During a meeting in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan and Lithuania discussed opportunities to expand trade and economic cooperation, including transport and logistics links through the Central Asia-European Union format, Trend reported. The Turkmen Mejlis (Parliament) said this in a press release after its representatives met on October 1 with a Lithuanian delegation led by Dainius Varnas, who chairs the Lithuanian Seimas' interparliamentary friendship group with Turkmenistan.
The sides discussed further development of bilateral cooperation, including in the trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres. According to the Mejlis, Lithuanian representatives said the Central Asia-European Union format provides opportunities to develop political dialogue and transport and logistics corridors between the region's countries.
The sides also highlighted interparliamentary dialogue as a crucial component of bilateral cooperation, including the exchange of experience in legislative work. Lithuania and Turkmenistan established diplomatic relations in 1992. Bilateral ties have since included political dialogue, trade and economic cooperation, as well as contacts in the transport, education and cultural spheres.
Trade between the two countries remains relatively modest but has included Lithuanian exports of machinery, electrical equipment, chemicals and other industrial goods. Lithuania has also sought to expand economic engagement with Turkmenistan through business delegations and bilateral contacts.
Transport and logistics have become an increasingly relevant area of cooperation. Lithuania, as an EU member and a Baltic state with access to the Baltic Sea, can provide a link between Central Asian markets and Northern Europe, while Turkmenistan is developing its position as a transport hub on routes connecting Central Asia with the Caspian Sea and beyond.
Qazinform News Agency previously reported that the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, congratulated Turkmenistan on Independence Day.