Turkmenistan has historically been a difficult partner to deal with.
The Turkmen government’s isolationist policies run counter to deep cooperation with any foreign party, but the Turkmen authorities seem to now perceive that these policies are costing them opportunities and revenue.
In one of the latest shifts in foreign policy, Turkmenistan appears to be warming up relations with the European Union, though currently, the EU has its own reasons to boost interaction with Turkmenistan.
Let’s Meet
For decades, the EU and many other countries and international organizations have gone through frustrating efforts to establish a reliable relationship with Turkmenistan.
Ashgabat’s form of governance is based on a cult of personality, a supposedly infallible leader capable of protecting the country from the evils of the outside world.
The UN recognition in December 1995 of Turkmenistan’s neutrality was used by its government to seal off the country.
It would normally be easy for the rest of the world to ignore Turkmenistan. However, Turkmenistan possesses the planet’s fourth-largest proven natural gas reserves, and it is located on what is developing into a key global trade route.
On March 20, the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) regional representative for Central Asia, Olivier Kueny, complimented Turkmenistan for its “ambitions in transport and… projects that reduce greenhouse gases.“
Kueny noted that, “with direct access to the Caspian Sea, [Turkmenistan] is a key node” of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor (TITR). He hinted the EIB could be interested in investing in Turkmenistan’s “rail, road, rolling stock and port infrastructure [that] could help reduce the cost and time needed to move goods between continents.“
On March 26, Charlotte Adriaen, the head of the EU division for Central Asia and Afghanistan, met in Ashgabat with Turkmenistan’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Myahri Byashimova, to discuss energy cooperation. The two also reviewed EU programs for sustainable energy, trade, and digital connectivity.
On the same day, there was also a “New Horizons for Connectivity, Investment and Sustainable Growth” Turkmenistan-EU business forum in Ashgabat. Turkmenistan’s Minister of Finance and Economy, Mammetguly Astanagulov, addressed more than 200 delegates attending the forum, telling them his country is ready to expand trade, transport, and energy cooperation with the EU. Astanagulov noted EU-Turkmenistan trade increased from $1.1 billion in 2024 to $2.1 billion in 2025.
EU Ambassador to Turkmenistan Beata Peksa also spoke at the forum. She noted Turkmenistan’s growing role in global transport corridors between Europe and Asia and said the EU is seeking to work more closely with Turkmenistan on improving investment conditions in the country. Peksa also mentioned helping Turkmenistan improve regulatory frameworks and investment in modern technologies to increase efficiency in moving cargo.
On April 1, Adriaen met with representatives from Turkmenistan’s State Service of Maritime and River Transportation at the Turkmenbashi International Seaport on the Caspian coast to discuss the port’s role in the TITR and projects at the Balkan shipbuilding yard.
And on April 7, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) co-sponsored an “Export Experience Exchange” conference in Ashgabat, the aim of which was to help Turkmen companies increase their presence in international markets.
The Turkmen Leadership Goes to Europe
On April 8, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, the Chairman of Turkmenistan’s Halk Maslahaty (People’s Council), started a two-day visit to Austria. Berdimuhamedov was Turkmenistan’s president from late 2006 until 2022, during which time he built his own cult of personality.
His predecessor, Turkmenistan’s first president, Saparmurat Niyazov, was officially referred to inside the country as “Turkmenbashi,” the “Leader of the Turkmen.” Berdimuhamedov was given the title “Arkadag,” or “Protector.” State media called him by this title for years before expanding it to “Hero Arkadag.”
He stepped down as president in early 2022, making way for his son, Serdar, to be elected president in March that year. Apparently, the father missed being Turkmenistan’s leader, and one year later, the constitution was changed, making the Halk Maslahaty (People’s Council) the supreme body and its chairman the supreme leader.
The reason for Berdimuhamedov Senior’s presence in Vienna was not clear. Turkmen media confined their reporting of the visit to brief reviews of Austrian-Turkmen ties. But the visit to Vienna follows a visit to Germany in February.
Arkadag first traveled to the United States. Reportedly, he was in Florida to discuss golf courses, tour local equestrian facilities, and hold some meetings with U.S. business representatives.
He stopped over in Germany on his way back, and was reportedly there to discuss preparations for the 2026 FEI World Equestrian Championships in Aachen and an Akhal-Teke horse (Turkmenistan’s native horse) beauty contest scheduled to take place in the Netherlands.
It is possible those were the only reasons the elder Berdimuhamedov made the trip, but it seems there must have been more to the visits that was reported. Certainly, in the last decade or so, when he was president, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov made very few foreign trips, and when he did, he was usually gone for less than 24 hours. A stopover in Germany and a visit to Austria two months apart are unusual for Arkadag.
His son, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, is going to Brussels sometime later this year.
EU Ambassador Peksa announced the visit on February 17, and Turkmen media said the exact date of the trip was still being discussed.
Signs of the Times
The EU Global Gateway initiative will see 12 billion euros invested in projects in Central Asia in the coming years. Many of these projects focus on connectivity; others involve access to Central Asian energy resources.
Turkmenistan spent some $1.5 billion on the construction of the Caspian port at Turkmenbashi city. The seaport opened in 2018 and can handle approximately 17 million tons of cargo annually. The volume of cargo currently transiting the port is far below capacity.
The EU would like to see that increase and Turkmenistan become a key transit country in the TITR, also known as the Middle Corridor. A reliable railway, road, and maritime network in Turkmenistan would complement the similar trade network Kazakhstan has been developing to the north.
As for energy cooperation, there is still only limited potential, though clearly, with the situation in the Strait of Hormuz threatening to cause huge gas and oil shortages, the EU would like to be able to import more hydrocarbon resources from Central Asia.
Unfortunately, there is insufficient infrastructure to export large amounts of Turkmen gas or oil to the West. Turkmenistan does have a small oil tanker fleet in the Caspian that has alternated over the years between unloading in Russia and Azerbaijan, but its shipments are limited to tens of thousands of tons annually.
Plans to build a Trans-Caspian Pipeline that could carry up to 30 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas to Europe have made no real progress. The EU continually mentions the desirability of importing Turkmen gas, but the possibility still does not exist.
Still, for Turkmenistan, now might be the time to inquire whether the EU still has an interest, and possibly a solution, and funding, for importing some of Turkmenistan’s vast hydrocarbon resources.
Turkmenistan’s attempts to export its gas have been thwarted at almost every turn. Admittedly, much of the fault lies with Turkmenistan, as the government’s policy for years was that any party interested in buying Turkmen gas needed to build a pipeline to the Turkmen border.
There were not many takers. China did build three pipelines from Turkmenistan and is now the only major gas customer Turkmenistan has. Iran built two pipelines, but neither is operating after Turkmenistan turned off the supplies almost a decade ago over unpaid Iranian bills.
The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline that aims to carry some 33 bcm of Turkmen gas is not much closer to being realized than it was 30 years ago when the idea first emerged. Turkmenistan has constructed its section leading from Turkmen gas fields to the Afghan border. But the TAPI section in Afghanistan is inching forward and at the moment only extends some 25 kilometers on route to the city of Herat.
Months of fighting between Afghanistan and Pakistan suggest it will be many years before TAPI progresses any further than Herat, if the pipeline ever progresses at all.
Turkmenistan has been trying to arrange swap agreements that would allow gas sales to Iraq, Turkey, and Azerbaijan, but all these deals involve Iran, and the current situation there indicates it could be many years before such agreements could be fulfilled.
That leaves the transit of goods as Turkmenistan’s best chance of boosting state revenue. Increasing cargo shipments is certainly having a positive financial effect in Kazakhstan, where the government has embraced the rapid development of road, rail, and maritime infrastructure along the Middle Corridor.
In light of the recent uptick in activity between the EU and Turkmenistan, it is interesting that Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov made one other trip in 2026, to China in March.
Turkmenistan literally cannot afford to remain walled off to the outside world any longer, and the Middle Corridor represents opportunity knocking on its door. Apparently, for once, Turkmenistan is opening the door, at least a little bit.
