ASHGABAT (TCA) — On December 5-6, Ashgabat hosted a workshop and a meeting of an Inter-sectoral Working Group on the development of multi-sector investment projects for achieving water, energy and food security in Turkmenistan within the European Union funded Nexus project, the EU Liaison Office in Turkmenistan reported.

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BISHKEK (TCA) — The European Union (EU) and German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) on December 5 launched the Integrated Rural Development Programme in Jalal-Abad region in southern Kyrgyzstan, the Delegation of the European Union to the Kyrgyz Republic reported.

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BISHKEK (TCA) — The European Union, which is currently negotiating enhanced relations with Kyrgyzstan, should use this opportunity to stress that closer relations will be tied to timely release of Azimjon Askarov, a jailed 68-year-old human rights defender from Kyrgyzstan, Human Rights Watch said on December 6.

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BISHKEK (TCA) — As countries of Central Asia are now building their new regional cooperation, they need effective and permanent institutional structures that would help to achieve this goal. We are republishing this article on the issue, written by Svante E. Cornell and S. Frederick Starr:

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ASHGABAT (TCA) — Giving assessment to the country’s development for 11 months of this year at the session of the Government on December 4, the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov outlined the country’s priority objectives to be achieved next year, the State News Agency of Turkmenistan reported.

The Turkmen leader noted that despite the complicated situation in the world economy as well as deficiency in work of certain branches especially in the oil and gas sector, Turkmenistan’s economy has managed to keep high growth rates.

According to forecasts, the GDP growth will be 6.2 percent by the end of the year. The volumes of production have been increased almost in all branches of the economy. The share of the private sector in the economy, which makes 65 percent nowadays, has also grown, the President said.

The production of export oriented goods has been increased by 51 percent and the import of raw materials and resources has been reduced by 48 percent.

The Head of State mentioned the necessity of further measures to increase the import substitutive production by making new type of goods.

The President noted positive outcomes of eleven months of the year. Taking into consideration the real situation, a balanced State budget has been adopted for 2019. In addition, Turkmenistan has enough resources in the Stabilization Fund and big volumes of government resources, the President said.

It is also necessary to speed up privatization. Initial Public Offers, organization of stock market and open competitive bidding are the main mechanisms of privatization, Berdymukhammedov said.

The Cabinet of Ministers will have to adopt a new economic model of development for the country until 2025, which would lay the foundation for structural changes in the national economy, the President said.

ASTANA (TCA) — Kazakhstan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko’s visit to Great Britain ended on December 5 with the Kazakhstan delegation taking part in the Fifth annual Eurasian Council on Foreign Affairs (ECFA) meeting in London chaired by Dr. Benita Ferrero-Waldner, former EU Commissioner for External Relations and Chair of the ECFA Advisory Council, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry reported.

“[Kazakhstan] President Nursultan Nazarbayev outlined during his speech at the 12th Asia-Europe Meeting Summit, which took place in October in Brussels, his deep concern over the crisis of trust and lack of dialog taking place today in the world. In addressing the distinguished European politicians joining us today, I would like to propose that we discuss the details of President Nazarbayev’s initiative on strengthening confidence measures and convening a leading World leaders meeting in Astana,” said Mr. Vassilenko in his speech.

The Kazakh diplomat further informed the meeting participants about the positive dynamics of relations between Central Asian states and between these countries and the European Union, outlining a number of Astana’s common approaches to the EU Strategy for the region being developed. A focus on connectivity and logistics, development of private entrepreneurship, including women’s, strengthening the rule of law, as well as proposals for a more structured and systemic online presentation and promotion of the strategy and all the information related to it were discussed.

At the end of the meeting, the ECFA presented a special Report with its recommendations on the EU’s new Strategy for Central Asia, which is to be adopted in the first half of 2019. The Report, which is the synthesis of expert contributions from fifteen international institutions including the United Nations, the EBRD, the OECD and several universities, contains a chapter of conclusions and recommendations aimed at informing the European External Action Service as it considers its new Strategy for Central Asia covering the period of 2020-2027. Specifically, among other recommendations the report suggests that the EU’s new Strategy for Central Asia should aim to:

– Limit its focus to a “realistic assessment of [the EU’s] interests and competitive advantages in Central Asia”;

– Consider regional differences, rather than adopt a blanket approach to Central Asian states;

– Shift cooperation from a conference- and dialogue-based relationship to a more practical and operational approach, with hands-on projects and summits in each Central Asian state;

– Bring this approach to bear on human rights dialogue with Central Asian states, and move away from the “Eurocentric” perspective which has prevailed until now, with limited results;

– Focus on effective “soft power” initiatives such as improving health services, justice and law enforcement, as well as fighting corruption.

Participants had a chance to deliberate the main points and proposals at the press conference that was organised after the main event. Dr. Benita Ferrero-Waldner, EU Special Representative for Central Asia Peter Burian, former Foreign Minister of Italy and ECFA Advisory Council member Franco Frattini, EBRD Managing Director for Central Asia and Russia Natalia Khanjenkova, members of the Kazakhstan delegation, as well as British and European journalists were among those who took part in discussions.

The Eurasian Council on Foreign Affairs (ECFA) is an independent think tank, which focuses on Central Asia and works on promoting greater awareness about the region and strengthening economic, institutional and political relations between European and Central Asian countries. Influential European politicians, like the former presidents of the Czech Republic Dr. Václav Klaus, of Poland – Aleksander Kwaśniewski, of Serbia – Boris Tadić, of Slovenia – Danilo Türk, former Prime Minister of Norway Kjell Magne Bondevik, former Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom Jack Straw PC, and many others are ECFA Advisory Council members. Member of the British Parliament, and until recently the Secretary of State for International Development, Priti Patel became the new member of the ECFA Advisory Council during the Fifth annual ECFA meeting.