A meeting of the delegation of Turkmenistan headed by Vice-Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs Rashid Meredov with the President of Afghanistan Mohammad Ashraf Ghani was held in Kabul last Saturday, the website of the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan reports.

 Having mentioned the high dynamics of the development of bilateral ties, the parties noted the effectiveness of the interstate political and diplomatic dialogue, as well as the consistent development of trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian ties.

 As part of the conversation, important stages of bilateral interaction in the previous year to promote large joint infrastructure projects were noted, and key vectors of partnership for 2021 were highlighted.

 According to the press service of the Presidential Administration of Afghanistan, at the meeting with the Turkmen delegation, Ashraf Ghani said that relations between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan always were fraternal and friendly, and that over the past few years, greater progress has been made in various areas of trade, transit, economy and politics.

 During the meeting, the parties discussed joint economic projects, including the construction of the TAPI gas pipeline, the TAP power transmission line and fiber-optic communication line, as well as the railway in Afghanistan.

 Mohammad Ashraf Ghani thanked Turkmenistan for its efforts and support to Afghanistan, especially in the implementation of these projects.  “Our goal is to import more electricity from Turkmenistan, and importing electricity and completing large economic projects is one of the top priorities of the Afghan g, - the President said.

 Speaking about the expansion of political, economic and security relations between the two countries, Ashraf Ghani also said that peace and stability in Afghanistan meant peace and stability in the region.

 On the same day, R. Meredov met with the chairman of the Supreme Council for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah.  At the same time, political consultations between foreign ministries were held in Kabul, as a result of which a Program of Cooperation between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan for 2021-2022 was signed.

 On the same day, the 6th meeting of the joint Turkmen-Afghan commission on security cooperation was held.  The sides exchanged views on strengthening partnership in countering modern threats and challenges, including terrorism, extremism, cyber attacks, etc. The two countries expressed their readiness to strengthen cross-border cooperation and maintain information security.