Turkmenistan, 2014

First, I have the honour to convey words of greeting

and wishes of peace and prosperity to the Member

States and their people on behalf of the President of

Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow. I should

like to congratulate Mr. Sam Kutesa on his election

to the post of President of the General Assembly at

its sixty-ninth session and wish him success in his

forthcoming responsibilities. I should also like to

express my appreciation to Mr. John Ashe, President

at the sixty-eighth session, for his skillful and effective

work in this post.

The current session of the General Assembly

is taking place against the background of difficult

processes that we see in various regions of the world.

Assessment of these processes and their causal

relationships may differ, but it is apparent that in view

of prevailing conditions the world community needs to

apply balanced, sober and a highly responsible approach

to emerging and potential challenges and threats.

The peaceful resolution of these conflicts must be

achieved by diplomatic approaches. It is an objective

and imperative requirement of our times. Experience

once again vividly demonstrates that there is no military

solution to the international and internal conflicts in

today’s world. It is our firm conviction that the role of

the United Nations is acquiring decisive importance.

The United Nations must play the leading role in

reconciling contradictions, preserving global stability,

and strengthening peoples’ faith in international

institutions and legal frameworks.

The Security Council is called on to assume a

special responsibility. Its functions and authority

under the United Nations Charter cannot be questioned

or used to satisfy some individual or group interest.

The Security Council is and must remain the only

universal legitimate body for maintaining global peace

and stability and safeguardingthe political and moral

foundations of the modern global architecture.

Turkmenistan has unceasingly and consistently

advocated the expansion and maximum use of the

United Nations peacekeeping potential. Today, the

need for this is especially relevant. Therefore, our

country proposes to actively begin the development

of common approaches with a view to reducing and,

in future, completely eliminating all potential risks of

confrontation.

As the Assembly will recall, the President of

Turkmenistan stated at the sixty-sixth session that it

was necessary to adopt a United Nations declaration

on the priority use of political and diplomatic means

to solve international problems and their further

consideration at the General Assembly. We are ready

to engage in meaningful and constructive discussions

with all interested parties on this issue.

The logic of the development of global processes in

the sphere of security dictates the need for fundamental

strengthening of regional cooperation mechanisms.

For Central Asia, such cooperation should ensure

favourable conditions for preserving and maintaining

lasting peace and stability and for successful responses

to terrorist threats, extremism, organized crime and

drug trafficking.

In this connection, we consider it relevant to create

a standing mechanism of political consultations to

coordinate steps aimed at maintaining security in this

area, as well as preventing and neutralizing conflict

situations and combating new threats. We propose that

serious consideration be given to the idea of convening

a forum on security and cooperation in Central Asia

under the auspices of the United Nations as a starting

platform for further work in this area.

We stand ready to host such a forum in 2015 in

Turkmenistan’s capital, Ashgabat. As the host country

of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive

Diplomacy for Central Asia, Turkmenistan advocates

multilateral support for its work, which has proven to

be highly effective. It is not by chance that in August

2012 the United Nations Security Council emphasized

the great importance of preventive diplomacy and

early settlement of disputes and in this connection

supported the efforts of the United Nations Regional

Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia. We

are convinced that in the context of current and future

developments of political, economic, environmental

and humanitarian processes in the Central Asian region

and neighbouring areas, the mandate of the Centre will

be especially relevant and necessary. We therefore call

for more active involvement of that Centre in various

aspects of regional problems with the support of

Member States.

Turkmenistan also believes that it is essential to

establish a more focused and substantive interaction

between the Regional Centre and international

organizations, including the Organization for Security

and Cooperation in Europe, the European Union, the

Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Commonwealth

of Independent States, and other bodies, with a view

to elaborating common approaches to such current

issues as transnational threats, terrorism, illegal drug

trafficking, environmental challenges, management of

transboundary water and energy resources, and regional

security in the context of the situation in Afghanistan.

In speaking of this, I wish to underline that the

settlement of the situation in Afghanistan is a key

factor in achieving regional peace and stability. It is

essential to support the positive processes that are

taking place in this country and to provide the Afghan

people with real assistance in achieving reconciliation

and accord. That can be achieved only through peaceful

negotiation. There are no other options here.

As a neutral country and Afghanistan’s immediate

neighbour, Turkmenistan offered its political space for

the organization of a broad-based inter-Afghan national

dialogue under the auspices and active involvement of

the United Nations. We already have joint experience

in conducting negotiations in such a format. We believe

that it could be used today as well. Such dialogue,

in addition to purely political aspects, implies the

discussion of a full set of measures aimed at providing

specific economic support to Afghanistan and the

involvement of that country in regional integration

processes and future infrastructure projects.

For many years Turkmenistan has provided

assistance to its neighbour in building social facilities

and initiated the implementation of major transport

and energy projects with Afghanistan’s participation.

In particular, I note the project envisaging construction

of the Turkmenistan/Pakistan/India gas pipeline,

preparations for which are nearing the final stages.

Another major project, which was launched in May

last year, involves the construction of a Turkmenistan/

Afghanistan/Tajikstan railway. We consider these

projects to be key in rebuilding the economy and

social spheres of Afghanistan, and enabling it to make

thetransition to a peaceful and creative existence.

For a number of years our country has consistently

supplied electric power to Afghanistan on highly

favourable terms. In the near future, thanks to the

commissioning of new power-generating capacities

in Turkmenistan, we are prepared to increase the

volume of power supplied to Afghanistan many-fold.

As in the past, we provide purpose-oriented training

of specialists for the Afghan economy, health care

and social spheres. We will continue to provide all-

encompassing help to the fraternal Afghan people. It is

our principled position.

Turkmenistan believes that the irreversible nature

of the disarmament process is the most important

prerequisite for the peaceful and creative development

of the region and the establishment of a climate of trust,

openness and cooperation in Central Asia. Our country

proceeds from the assumption that the inert model of the

past century, which was based on the constant build-up

of armaments, has become irrelevant in today’s world.

Furthermore, it considerably hampers and sometimes

directly undermines efforts by States towards social

and economic development, the enhancement of

people’s standards of living, and the development of

successful economic cooperation. It is our conviction

that the fewer weapons there are in the world, the more

stable and peaceful its development will be, and the

more trust and understanding among countries and

peoples will deepen.

We call for consistent strengthening of international

and regional cooperation in reducing the arsenals

of weapons of mass destruction and the effective

implementation of the non-proliferation regime. As a

party to the basic disarmament treaties and conventions

of the United Nations, Turkmenistan intends to continue

to provide support to all the relevant processes.In this

connection, while emphasizing the landmark nature of

the first session of the Preparatory Committee for the

2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty

on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons that was

held in Vienna in 2012, Turkmenistan believes that it

is key to continue the current dialogue on measures

aimed at expanding the international legal framework

of non-proliferation.

This dialogue becomes especially relevant in view

of the practical steps that are being taken in order to

implement the Treaty on a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone

in Central Asia. Our country stands ready to engage in

constructive disarmament cooperation with the Office

of the Deputy Secretary-General and to participate in

the implementation of a number of initiatives in this

regard. One of the practical steps in the implementation

of measures for disarmament could be the improvement

of existing United Nations structures. In this

context, we believe that it will be useful to consider

the establishment of a United Nations subregional

disarmament centre in Central Asia.

Turkmenistan looks forward to the logical

continuation at this session of the broad-based dialogue

on energy security as one of the fundamental elements

of the United Nations sustainable development strategy

initiated by the President of Turkmenistan. As is well

known, in May 2013 the General Assembly unanimously

adopted resolution 67/263 entitled “Reliable and stable

transit of energy and its role in ensuring sustainable

development and international cooperation”. The

resolution was sponsored by 71 Member States. The

adoption of the resolution was yet another major and

consecutive step in advancing international cooperation

in the sphere of energy. We believe that adherence to

the letter and spirit of that document should acquire a

substantive and purpose-oriented nature.

In this connection, we call on Member States and

the Secretariat to actively undertake consultations on

the practical implementation of the provisions of this

resolution. In particular, we note the institutionalization

of the work of the international group of experts on

energy cooperation and nominating representatives

of Member States to that group. In December, the

first international meeting of experts will take place

in Turkmenistan. It is designed to launch systematic

work on the establishment of a new legal framework of

cooperation in sustainable energy. We invite Member

States and all interested parties to take part in it.

The outcome document of the United Nations

Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de

Janeiro, entitled “The future we want” (resolution

66/288, annex), emphasizes the central role of transport

and mobility in sustainable development. We fully

share that approach. Moreover, Turkmenistan is

convinced that it is high time to undertake systematic

global cooperation and strategic planning in transport

as a separate, long-term area of United Nations activity.

In early September, Turkmenistan’s capital hosted

a high-level international conference dedicated to

the role of transport and transit corridors in ensuring

international cooperation, stability and sustainable

development. The Ashgabat Declaration adopted at

the end of the Conference reflects the need to develop

new modern criteria for cooperation in this sphere

that are oriented towards diversification, security,

accessibility, environmental safety of the transportation

infrastructure, and its maximum correspondence to the

realities of current global development, taking into

account the needs of developing countries, including

landlocked States. As the President of Turkmenistan

emphasized in his address to the participants at that

conference, the global transport strategy of the twenty-

first century is a strategy for integration, combining

geographical and infrastructural opportunities with

the technical and technological potentials of States and

regions.

The very fact of the convening of that conference

was a momentous event, signalling a comprehensive

approach to the development of transport and transit

corridors based on constructive and real partnerships.

Our country has submitted the Ashgabat Declaration

to the Secretariat for its distribution among Member

States as an official document. We hope that it will be

studied with interest and that there will be further use of

this Declaration in international agreements, including

those of the sixty-ninth session of the Assembly.

With a view to the accelerated development of

international transport infrastructure, Turkmenistan

advocates closer cooperation and partnerships with

specialized bodies of the United Nations, first and

foremost the Economic Commission for Europe and

the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and

the Pacific. We are convinced that such cooperation

corresponds to the logic of modern development and

international cooperation in transport in the Eurasian

continent.

Turkmenistan fully supports the decisions taken

during the Summits on Climate Change held in

Copenhagen and Cancún, at the seventeenth Conference

of the Parties to the United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change held in Durban, and

at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable

Development. We look forward to the continuation of

constructive international dialogue on these issues. We

are convinced that it is necessary to consistently combine

efforts at the international, regional and national levels.

In this context, we welcome the Secretary-General’s

efforts to implement the agreed-upon decisions and

his sense of utmost responsibility in his approach

to international cooperation with respect to climate

change issues. Our country recently launched a number

of specific initiatives aimed at enhancing regional and

global cooperation in this sphere.

I wish to single out Turkmenistan’s humanitarian

efforts as a member of major United Nations

humanitarian agencies. Turkmenistan takes practical

steps to ensure the rights and freedoms of its citizens.

In particular, our country devotes major attention

to solving issues relating to the rights of refugees,

migrants and stateless persons. Last June, in our

capital, the Government of Turkmenistan, along with

the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and

the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner

for Refugees, organized the International Conference

on Migration and Statelessness. Upon its conclusion,

the Conference adopted a declaration that spells out

urgent tasks to improve multilateral cooperation,

strengthen international legal frameworks, and reform

national legislation on migrants andstateless persons

and their legal and social protection, material support

and adaptation. Turkmenistan will endeavour at this

session to translate the main provisions of this outcome

document into reality. We reaffirm our desire and

readiness to continue close cooperation with the IOM,

the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner

for Refugees, Member States and all stakeholders.

Our country views the sixty-ninth session as a

major step towards consolidating international efforts

to resolve key issues on the global agenda, to reaffirm

the leading role of the United Nations in maintaining

and strengthening universal peace and stability and to

agree on sustainable development goals. We reaffirm

our strong commitment to cooperation with the United

Nations, our readiness to actively participate and

promote its peacekeeping, political and diplomatic

endeavours and to implement its projects and

programmes in the economic, social, environmental,

humanitarian and other spheres.

For Turkmenistan, partnership with the United

Nations has been and continues to be a strategic priority,

a conceptual and practical foundation for our activities

in the international arena.