Tag Archives: Turkmenistan

Turkmen police told to lose weight

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NOV. 25 (The Bulletin) — Police officers in Turkmenistan have taken up jogging and are rushing to join the gym to lose weight before a Dec. 25 deadline, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported.

The US-funded news website said that several policemen in Turkmenistan had said that the new interior minister Mammedkhan Chakyev “doesn’t like fat cops” and that they will lose their job if they do not weigh less than 100kg.

Overweight police, with paunches hanging over their belts, are a relatively common sight in Central Asia. Other countries have also previously ordered police to lose weight.

Police across Central Asia have a reputation for being corrupt and incompetent.

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— This story was first published in issue 430 of the weekly Bulletin.

Turkmen leader gives his son a prestigious award

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NOV. 9 (The Bulletin) — Highlighting the ascendancy of Serdar Berdymukhamedov, his father, Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov awarded him a prestigious award for work, state-owned media reported. Serdar Berdymukhamedov is governor of the Ahal region and is thought-of as a potential successor for his father.

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— This story was first published in issue 428 of the weekly Bulletin

Turkmen doctor retracts statement that he is gay

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NOV. 6 (The Bulletin) — A Turkmen doctor who came out as gay on a video broadcast by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has recanted the information and said that it was falsised. Three days after coming out as gay, Kasymberdy Garayev, was summoned to a police station in Ashgabat. He left the following day and immediately distance himself from his earlier comments. Homosexuality is illegal in Turkmenistan.

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— This story was first published in issue 428 of the weekly Bulletin

Turkmenistan’s Berdy visits Rome

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NOV. 8 (The Bulletin) — Turkmen leader Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov visited Rome for a meeting with Italian PM Giuseppe Conte, a rare trip for Turkmenistan’s often-derided leader to visit an EU government. Italian companies, including energy company ENI, are working on a handful of major construction and oil and gas projects in Turkmenistan.

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— This story was first published in issue 428 of the weekly Bulletin

New video dispels Berdy death rumours

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Aug. 5 (The Bulletin) — In a move designed to dispel rumours swirling around the internet that Turkmen president Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov had died, Turkmenistan’s state TV published a video of him driving a rally car around a flaming crater in the desert. Mr Berdymukhamedov has cultivated something of an action-man reputation, releasing videos of himself leading gym workouts and firing range practice with the army.
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— This story was first published in issue 418 of the weekly Bulletin

Europe bans Turkmenistan Airline

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FEB. 5 (The Conway Bulletin) — The European Aviation Safety Agency banned Turkmenistan Airlines from flights to EU airports until it had proved that it meets international safety standards. The ban is a blow to Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov who has spent millions of dollars buying new jets for the airline. Turkmenistan Airlines flys from Birmingham and London Heathrow via Ashgabat to India. To cover the gap, it hired aircraft from a Spanish operator.
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>This story was first published in issue 399 of The Conway Bulletin on Feb. 8 2019
Copyright The Conway Bulletin 2019

Turkmenistan to start building trans-country motorway

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JAN. 26 (The Conway Bulletin) — Turkmenistan started work on construction of a $2.3 four-lane motorway that will run across the sandy Kara Kum desert and connect Ashgabat with Uzbekistan.

Serdar Berdymukhamedov, the son of President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and widely regarded as his heir, launched the construction, highlighting its prominence. The project is seen as a continuation of Turkmenistan’s government policy to try to kickstart its economy through a combination of spending cuts on services and prestige infrastructure projects which aim to generate thousands of jobs and additional revenue.

Turkmen officials have said that the road, the biggest ever built in Turkmenistan, will also build up its position as a prominent stage-post for trade routes running across Central Asia.

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>This story was first published in issue 398 of The Conway Bulletin on Jan. 31 2019
Copyright The Conway Bulletin 2019

Turkmenistan to privatise transport network

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JAN. 30 (The Conway Bulletin) — Turkmenistan will sell off its transport network and cut funding to its Academy of Sciences in more cuts to public spending which are designed to keep its listing economy afloat.

In a decree published on Turkmen government websites, President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said that the changes were needed to modernise the Turkmen economy.

Last year, Mr Berdymukhamedov slashed subsidies on water, gas and electricity and also raised duties on alcohol and cigarettes. Although information is thin, analysts have said that the cutbacks are a response to Turkmenistan’s sluggish recovery from an economic downturn in 2014-17 linked to a collapse in energy prices. Gas is Turkmenistan’s main export.

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>This story was first published in issue 398 of The Conway Bulletin on Jan. 31 2019
Copyright The Conway Bulletin 2019

Turkmenistan to start exporting oil via Russia

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JAN. 25 (The Conway Bulletin) — As part of improved bilateral relations, Turkmenistan will start pumping its oil via Russia, reducing flows through the BTC pipeline that runs from Azerbaijan, through Georgia to Turkey, analysts told Reuters. The reduction in Turkmen flows will also lower the quality of the oil from BTC as its oil is considered high-quality.
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>This story was first published in issue 398 of The Conway Bulletin on Jan. 31 2019
Copyright The Conway Bulletin 2019

Turkmenistan mobilises its military reserves (again)

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JAN. 15 (The Conway Bulletin) — Turkmenistan has started registering reservists because of concerns over militants in neighbouring Afghanistan, sources at the ministry of defence told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Turkmenistan has periodically raised concerns over fighting in neighbouring provinces in Afghanistan. In 2015, President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov ordered all reservists to undertake their first mass military exercise since the 1991 break up of the Soviet Union. This was repeated in 2016, and in 2017 he signed another decree calling up for military service all men over the age of 18.

Analysts have said that Turkmen officials are concerned about worsening stability on their southern border with Afghanistan.

The RFE/RL source said that men under 50 had been told to register with the military. Turkmenistan is officially neutral.

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>>This story was first published in issue 397 of The Conway Bulletin on Jan. 20 2019