AKIPRESS.COM – On June 19, an official welcoming ceremony was held at the Presidential Palace Complex of Turkmenistan for Prime Minister of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim, who had arrived in Ashgabat.
President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for accepting the invitation to pay an official visit to Turkmenistan. It was noted that Anwar Ibrahim’s first visit to Turkmenistan is viewed as an important event in the history of the two peoples and states.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reaffirmed that Malaysia fully supports the initiatives of Turkmenistan and expressed readiness to further expand productive cooperation with Turkmenistan.
Speaking about President Serdar Berdimuhamedov’s visit to Malaysia in 2024, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim noted that the agreements reached during that visit gave a powerful impetus to strengthening bilateral interaction.
The President of Turkmenistan emphasized that Turkmen-Malaysian cooperation has developed greatly since the establishment of diplomatic relations.
An effective partnership has been established between the two states in political-diplomatic, trade-economic and cultural-humanitarian spheres. Turkmenistan and Malaysia successfully cooperate within major international bodies, primarily the United Nations.
The trade and economic vector serves as a key area of Turkmen-Malaysian relations. The effective nature of the partnership in the oil and gas industry, carried out for 30 years with one of Malaysia’s major companies “Petronas”, was emphasized.
The parties discussed cultural and humanitarian cooperation, particularly in the field of education. Turkmen specialists trained in Malaysia’s leading higher education institutions work in various sectors of the national economy, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov emphasized, thanking the Malaysian side.
During the meeting, the head of state and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reaffirmed their readiness to continue joint activities to strengthen relations between Turkmenistan and Malaysia.
Subsequently, the talks continued in an expanded format with the participation of delegations from both states.
The parties discussed issues in political, economic and cultural sectors. It was emphasized that next year will mark the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
President Serdar Berdimuhamedov noted that Malaysia consistently supports Turkmenistan on the world stage, including its international initiatives and proposals, and actively participated in drafting resolution projects on the permanent neutrality of Turkmenistan adopted in 1995, 2015, and 2025.
During the meeting, gratitude was expressed to the Malaysian side for supporting the Resolution “The role and importance of a policy of neutrality in maintaining and strengthening international peace, security and sustainable development process”, initiated by Turkmenistan and adopted on May 20.
It was noted that Malaysia also co-sponsored UN resolutions put forward by Turkmenistan regarding energy security and international transport cooperation.
During the negotiations, cooperation within other multilateral frameworks was reviewed, particularly with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The head of state highlighted cooperation with Malaysia as a founding country and an influential member of ASEAN. It was emphasized that Turkmenistan highly appreciates the results of Malaysia’s chairmanship in ASEAN in 2025.
Naming the protection of the legitimate interests of developing countries and their rights in global decision-making among the key vectors of joint work between Turkmenistan and Malaysia, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov confirmed that the country supports the initiatives of the friendly state to strengthen the position of the Global South and promote a culture of dialogue.
“We are ready to closely cooperate with Malaysia in promoting initiatives to strengthen international security, and to jointly support programs for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals,” the President of Turkmenistan noted.
Furthermore, the desire to interact in areas such as transitioning to the climate agenda and energy, developing interregional dialogue between Central and Southeast Asia, and facilitating the formation of new transport and logistics corridors on the Asian continent was highlighted.
The parties also discussed partnership within the framework of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
The trade, economic, and investment spheres were identified as important vectors of bilateral relations, with an emphasis on the oil and gas sector. In this regard, it was noted that the Malaysian company “Petronas” is one of the main partners in Turkmenistan.
In order to implement large-scale and long-term projects in the oil and gas industry, a number of important bilateral documents have been prepared. Wide-ranging work involving “Petronas” will begin in the near future to develop new hydrocarbon fields in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, as well as to conduct research on promising oil and gas complexes in the Caspian Sea, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov noted.
“Malaysia is interested in studying Turkmenistan’s rich and modern experience in the energy sector, the organization of information centers, and other fields, and highly values its long-standing cooperation with Petronas,” Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said.
During the negotiations, it was stated that both countries possess significant opportunities for developing cooperation in areas such as high technologies, the financial and banking sector, the textile industry, transport and communications, agriculture and water management, and urban planning.
It was noted that the cultural and humanitarian sphere is an integral part of interstate relations. The importance of holding reciprocal Days of Culture in both countries was discussed.
Interaction in education, specifically in training highly qualified specialists, is a clear testament to fruitful relations, Anwar Ibrahim noted, confirming Malaysia’s readiness to further expand partnership in this direction.
The Prime Minister of Malaysia emphasized that the translation of valuable works by the great poet Magtymguly Fragi into the Malay language serves as a striking example of cultural dialogue.
In conclusion, the leader of Turkmenistan noted that the current visit of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will strengthen interstate relations and expressed confidence that today’s meeting confirms the readiness of both countries for further joint activities.
The head of the government of Malaysia expressed confidence that the bonds of friendship between the peoples of the two countries will continue to strengthen.
Following the conclusion of the talks, a ceremony of signing and exchanging bilateral documents took place, including Memorandum of Understanding between the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan and the Academy of Sciences of Malaysia, Memorandum of Understanding between the “Türkmenhowaýollary” State Service and the Ministry of Transport of Malaysia, Air Services Agreement, Memorandum of Understanding on the training of diplomats and cooperation in scientific exchange.
Agreement between the Oguz Han Engineering and Technology University of Turkmenistan and Universiti Tenaga Nasional on student exchange and mobility programs, Agreement between the Turkmen State Architecture and Construction Institute and Universiti Tenaga Nasional, and Agreement between the State Energy Institute of Turkmenistan and Universiti Tenaga Nasional were signed as well.
Subsequently, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim signed the Joint Statement.
