ASHGABAT (TCA) — A one-week course on diplomacy for teaching staff and students of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the International University for Humanities and Development, supported by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, concluded on March 17 in Ashgabat.
“The OSCE Centre in Ashgabat is committed to building the capacity of Turkmen experts in all areas covered by the Centre’s mandate. The goal of this week’s course was to enhance the professional skills of Turkmenistan’s lecturers and students in diplomacy through the exchange of best practices,” said Natalya Drozd, Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat.
The course commenced with a three-day seminar for lecturers from the two national educational institutions. Experts from the Faculty of International Relations of the Belarusian State University discussed the organization of the teaching process, contemporary approaches to diplomatic and consular service curriculum design and innovative teaching methods. Participants exchanged experiences in engaging students in scientific and practical research work and stressed the impact of information technologies and the teaching of foreign languages on a state’s foreign policy.
Two days of lectures for students followed, on topics including bilateral and multilateral diplomacy in modern international relations, the role of international organizations such as the OSCE, public diplomacy, specifics of consular and diplomatic service as well as integration and disintegration processes in world politics.
“The Centre stands ready to support future academic ties between professors and students from different OSCE participating States, as the importance of diplomacy in today’s interdependent world will only continue to grow,” said Drozd.
