Russian President Vladimir Putin during a telephone conversation on Monday with President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov invited the Turkmen delegation to participate in the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council, which will be held on April 29-30 in Kazan, the country's state news agency reports.

Thanking the Turkmen leader for actively promoting the Turkmen-Russian cooperation, both in bilateral and multilateral formats, Vladimir Putin noted that the Russian side highly appreciates the participation of the Turkmen delegation at the upcoming meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Kazan on April 29-30 as an honorary guest.

Expressing gratitude for the invitation, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov noted that a high-level delegation at the level of the Vice Prime Minister of Turkmenistan will be sent to participate in the forum.

The Turkmen leader expressed confidence that the upcoming meeting will open up new opportunities for mutually beneficial partnership in both bilateral and multilateral formats.

Noting the positive nature of cooperation and mutual support in the fight against coronavirus infection, the head of the Russian Federation expressed gratitude to Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov for the fact that Turkmenistan was one of the first foreign countries to register Russian-made antiviral vaccines. They also expressed gratitude for the humanitarian cargo sent by Turkmenistan to Astrakhan.

Thanking for the active position of the Russian Federation in cooperation in the fight against coronavirus infection and noting the personal support of Vladimir Putin in the purchase of Russian vaccines by Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov expressed his conviction that only through joint efforts it is possible to defeat the pandemic.

The interlocutors also noted that the upcoming second Caspian Economic Forum in the summer, as well as the Summit of the heads of the Caspian States scheduled for autumn, will serve as a good platform for expanding friendly relations between the two countries and in the region as a whole.

Speaking about interstate cooperation, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov stressed that friendly relations between Turkmenistan and the Russian Federation, based on the principles of strategic partnership, trust and mutual understanding, are now successfully developing in a wide range of areas.

As noted, the expansion of the dialogue with Russia is one of the key vectors of Turkmenistan's foreign policy. At the same time, special emphasis was placed on the positive dynamics of partnership development in trade, economic, energy, cultural, humanitarian and other areas. In this regard, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov confirmed Turkmenistan's interest in building up a mutually beneficial dialogue with the Russian Federation.

During the conversation, Putin once again expressed his condolences to the Turkmen leader in connection with the recent death of his father, Myalikguly Berdimuhamedov.