Russian President Vladimir Putin personally presented President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov with the Order of Friendship in the Kremlin on Friday. The Russian president signed a corresponding decree in May.
Berdimuhamedov was awarded "for his great contribution to strengthening the strategic partnership between Russia and Turkmenistan."
"Both now, as head of state, and before your election as president, you have consistently advocated the development of friendly, truly close, partnership relations with Russia," Putin said to the president of Turkmenistan. The Russian leader noted that Berdimuhamedov "personally participated in the preparation and implementation of a number of joint initiatives and important agreements as co-chairman of the intergovernmental Russia-Turkmenistan Commission and was actively involved in the practical aspects of the promotion of bilateral economic relations". The Russian head of state wished his Turkmen counterpart "further successes as President of Turkmenistan for sustainable and stable development of Turkmenistan and the welfare of Turkmen citizens".
Berdimuhamedov said he was honored to accept the order. "I take this high award as a sign of respect for Turkmenistan," he said. "Building on a solid foundation of friendship, good neighborliness, deep historical ties, Turkmenistan and the Russian Federation are consistently strengthening bilateral relations, confidently building joint plans and programs of cooperation in the economy, in energy, transport, industry, agriculture and many other areas," he said. According to Berdimuhamedov, "Turkmenistan and the Russian Federation see clear goals in their relations and are ready to achieve them." "We have all opportunities for this," the president of Turkmenistan is sure. He called the award he received "another symbol of the inviolability of the strategic partnership, friendship, good neighborliness and cooperation of the two peoples and states."
On Friday the leaders are holding talks in the Kremlin. The current visit was Berdimuhamedov's first foreign official trip as president of Turkmenistan.
On March 15, 2022, the Turkmen Central Election Commission reported that in the early presidential elections held on March 12, Serdar Berdimuhamedov won with 72.97 percent of the vote. His father, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, had previously led the country.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Sergey Karpukhin / TASS
Based on materials from TASS