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Wang Yi Holds Talks with Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov and Deputy Prime Minister Serdar Berdymukhamedov

On May 10, 2021, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov and Deputy Prime Minister Serdar Berdymukhamedov who were on their visit to China in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province.

Wang Yi congratulated Turkmenistan on the 30th anniversary of its independence. Noting that this year marks the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and next year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Turkmenistan, which are in the prime of their lives, Wang Yi said, the telephone conversion between the two heads of state days ago has charted a course for the development of bilateral relations. China will continue to firmly support Turkmenistan's political reform and economic development actions, its efforts to take a development path suited to its own national conditions, its commitment to permanent neutrality, and its major international cooperation initiatives. And, China is also willing to be a reliable, long-term strategic partner of Turkmenistan. In face of the new situation and new challenges in the post-pandemic era, China and Turkmenistan have no choice but to strengthen bilateral relations and push forward the cooperation. Wang Yi expressed his hope that the two sides, in accordance with the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, could work together to build more thriving and dynamic China-Turkmenistan relations.

Viewing the bilateral cooperation in natural gas as the "bedrock" of the ties between the two countries, Wang Yi said, China sees Turkmenistan as its long-term cooperative partner in the field of natural gas and is willing to negotiate with Turkmenistan on a far-sighted, future-proofed comprehensive cooperation plan. While deepening the cooperation in natural gas, China and Turkmenistan should also vigorously expand trade, investment, connectivity, technological, cultural and local government cooperation, as well as cooperation in other non-resource fields, so as to inject fresh momentum into their cooperation, advance cooperation across all fields, help Turkmenistan diversify its economy and enhance capabilities for independent development, and realize win-win cooperation. China will continue to provide as much support and assistance as its capacity allows for the COVID-19 battle of Turkmenistan.

Wang Yi stressed, the two sides should consolidate and carry forward the good tradition of giving each other support and trust, and work jointly to defend the norms governing international relations such as non-interference in other's internal affairs. He thanked Turkmenistan for its firm support for China on issues concerning China's core interests, such as those concerning Taiwan, Xinjiang and Hong Kong. China will continue to support Turkmenistan in playing an active role in the UN and other multilateral arenas. On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of independence of the five countries in Central Asia, China hopes to reinforce strategic communication and deepen strategic coordination with all parties, and work together to set an example in novel regional cooperation through the first physical China +Central Asia (C+C5) foreign ministers' meeting, in a bid to contribute to development of these countries, protection of their legitimate rights and interests, and regional peace, stability and development.

Meredov and Serdar Berdymukhamedov said, China is the first country to establish diplomatic ties with Turkmenistan, and the two countries' relations have been developing at a fast speed under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state. Turkmenistan is willing to tap the potential of bilateral cooperation and advance the bilateral relations more substantially, with the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries as a new start. Both sides should keep stepping up natural gas cooperation, and also further consolidate and expand the cooperation in politics, diplomacy, economy and trade, technology, health, culture, local governments and connectivity, among other fields. Turkmenistan expressed congratulations to the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China and praised the enormous achievements China has scored in the reform and opening-up under the leadership of the CPC. Turkmenistan appreciated China for backing the initiatives put forward by the country within multilateral frameworks such as the UN, and it is willing to continuously give each other staunch support with China in the international arena, work together to crack down on the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism and uphold the universally-recognized international norms. Turkmenistan places a high premium on the C+C5 foreign ministers' meeting mechanism, under which it stands ready to engage in close cooperation with China to jointly defend regional peace, stability and development.

Both sides agreed to further consolidate and expand cooperation in natural gas and actively build a strategic partnership across the whole industry chains of the energy sector, while vigorously exploring cooperation in non-resource fields. Both sides also agreed to formulate a five-year plan for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and strengthen coordination in maintaining international information security and biosafety.

Both sides also exchanged in-depth views on international and regional issues of common concern, such as the situation in Afghanistan.

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