Fact Sheet on Turkmenistan

Country and Capital

Turkmenistan, Ashgabat

Area; arable land

488,100 sq Kms ( 80% desert) – about 1.4 times of Rajasthan;  9 million hectares (4.5 % of land)

Important cities

Ashgabat, Turkmenabat, Dashoguz, Mary, Balkanabat and Turkmenbashy  (port city)

Population (2010)

~ 6  million; sparsely populated

Land border/Caspian shoreline (Kms)

Afghanistan-744, Iran-992, Uzbekistan-1,621, Kazakhstan -379, Caspian Sea shoreline-1,768

Languages spoken

Mostly Turkmen as well as Russian, also some Uzbek

Religion

Sunni Muslims - 89%; Eastern Orthodox- 9%

Independence Day

27 October 1991

Day of Neutrality

12 December 1995

Constitution

New Constitution adopted on 26 September 2008

Head of State & Head of Govt.

H.E. Mr. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, since 14 February 2007

Legislature and Suffrage

Unicameral Parliament (Mejlis) with 125 members; 18 years

Last elections

14 December 2008

Political parties

Democratic Party of Turkmenistan ( opposition parties non-existent)

Judicial Branch

Supreme Court

Foreign Minister

Mr. Rashid Meredov. ( He is of the rank of Deputy Prime Ministers/ Deputy Chairman of Cabinet of Ministers)

Currency

Stable; Manat ( US $ 1= 2.843 Manat)

Natural resources

Huge reserves of Natural Gas , crude oil, cotton, wheat,  iodine

GDP per capita  (2009 est)/ GDP

US$ 3,248 (PPP basis); GDP – US$ 16.24 billion (PPP basis)

GDP growth rate (2010)

9.2%; good prognosis for 2011-12.

Global Trade in 2008

 

 

US$ 17.6 billion; Exports US$ 11.9 billion, Imports US$ 5.7 billion. 

Major exports: Natural Gas, crude oil / petroleum products, textiles, cotton, electricity

Major imports: manufactured goods, consumable items

Major countries-Exports: Iran, China, Russia, Turkey

Major countries-Imports: Turkey, Ukraine, Russia, UAE, China

External debt

US $ 4 billion to the Chinese development bank; US $ 1 billion to the Islamic Development Bank

Foreign Policy Orientation

Positive Neutrality, with constructive engagement with all countries.

Multilateral membership

UN and agencies, CIS (Associate member), ECO, OIC, NATO-PFP, OSCE, NAM, IMF.  Not yet WTO, SCO member.

Relations with India

Historically close and friendly ties; Turkman Gate in built in Delhi in 1650s; Presently 8 Turkmenistan Airways’ flights per week between two countries (2 to Delhi and 6 to Amritsar); TAPI gas pipeline project of key importance for India’s energy security.

ITEC training in India

286 nationals trained in different courses since 1994.

Trade with India in 2009-10 (Source: Ministry of Commerce, India)

Total trade US$ 46.15 million; Exports from India US$; 36.15 million ; Imports by India US$ 10 million.  Also, imports of goods by approx. 1,500 Turkmen shopping  tourists visiting India.    

Imports from India

Electronic and electrical items, machinery, woven apparel, pharmaceuticals, tyres and batteries.    

Exports to  India

Raw cotton and inorganic chemicals.

Major visits  from India

PM Shri  P.V. Narasimha Rao – Sept 1995; EAM Shri Jaswant Singh – May 1999; MOS(P&NG) Shri Dinsha Patel – Feb 2006; MOS(EA) Shri  E.Ahamed – Oct 2006 & Feb 2007; Minister of Water Resources Shri Saifuddin Soz – Dec 2006; VP Shri Hamid Ansari – April 2008;  EAM Shri S.M. Krishna – Sept. 2009; MOS Smt. Preneet Kaur – Feb. 2010; MOS(P&NG) Shri Jitin Prasada – Sept. 2010; Minister(P&NG) Shri Murli Deora – December 2010.

Major visits to India

President Niyazov – April 1992 & Feb 1997; Foreign Minister Boris Shikhmuradov – April 1995, July 1996, Dec 1997 and  April 2000.  Dy.PM  & Foreign Minister Meredov – Jan 2008 (for 2nd IGC);  President Berdimuhamedov – May 2010.

Joint Commission

Agreement signed on December 1995; 1st meeting held in October 2006, 2nd meeting in January 2008, 3rd  IGC in February 2010; 4th IGC likely in early-2012.

Important dates

India recognised  Turkmenistan as an independent country  on December 26,1991; established Embassy in Ashgabat on 30.1.94

Indian nationals in Turkmenistan

Approximately 1,250.  Prominent among them are engineers, businesspersons and traders.  As many as 1,100 are construction workers.

Turkmen nationals in India

90 students studying in Pune (some also in Hyderabad) on their own expenses.

Air links with India

Turkmen Airlines operates 8 flights a week to India – 2 flights from Ashgabat to Delhi and back and 6 flights from Ashgabat to Amritsar and back.