The seventh meeting of the Turkmen-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee on Cooperation was held in Ashgabat

On 16 April 2026, the seventh meeting of the Turkmen-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee on Cooperation was held in Ashgabat. The Turkmen side at the meeting was headed by Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov, while the Chinese delegation was headed by Member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Standing Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Ding Xuexiang.

Opening the meeting, the sides noted with satisfaction the steady development of Turkmen-Chinese relations built on the principles of strategic partnership. It was emphasized that regular and substantive dialogue at the highest state level gives a strong impetus to the further strengthening of bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas.

The effective cooperation of the two countries within authoritative international and regional structures, including in the “Central Asia – China” format, was also noted.

During the meeting, the results of the implementation of the agreements reached following the sixth meeting of the Committee were reviewed. Significant outcomes achieved by the parties in a number of key areas of cooperation were noted.

It was also noted that the Turkmen-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee and its subcommittees serve as an effective platform for coordinating joint work and developing practical solutions.

The agenda of the meeting covered a wide range of issues of Turkmen-Chinese cooperation. Special attention was paid to trade, economic and energy cooperation. The strategic importance of long-term cooperation in the gas sector, including the effective operation of the Turkmenistan – China gas pipeline, was emphasized. In this context, the importance of further advancing joint work on new stages of development of the Galkynysh field was specifically noted, as this is regarded as an important area for expanding the Turkmen – Chinese energy partnership.

Transport and logistics were also identified among the priority areas of cooperation. The parties confirmed their interest in intensifying joint work on the development of international transport and transit routes, including along the China – Turkmenistan – Caspian Sea – Europe and Turkmenistan – China – Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific directions.

In addition, other promising areas of cooperation were highlighted, including high technologies, artificial intelligence, communications, agriculture and water management, as well as cooperation in the field of metrology.

A special emphasis was placed on further strengthening cultural and humanitarian partnership. In this regard, the importance of the events held during the visit of the Chinese delegation to Turkmenistan was noted, including the opening of the first Luban Workshop, as well as the first phase of the Center of Chinese Traditional Medicine in our country.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the sides confirmed their mutual readiness to further deepen the Turkmen-Chinese comprehensive strategic partnership.

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Following the meeting, a number of bilateral documents were signed, including:

the Protocol of the seventh meeting of the Turkmen-Chinese Intergovernmental Committee on Cooperation;

the General Agreement between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on the basic principles of cooperation in the gas sector;

the Cooperation Program between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the People’s Republic of China for five years (for 2026-2030);

the Agreement between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on the mutual establishment of cultural centers;

the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on cooperation in the field of transport and logistics;

the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Communications of Turkmenistan and the State Committee for Development and Reform of the People’s Republic of China on the development of cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence;

the Program of scientific, technical and innovation cooperation for 2026-2028 between the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China;

the Memorandum of Understanding between the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the China Foreign Affairs University;

the Agreement between the Yagshygeldi Kakayev International Oil and Gas University (Turkmenistan), the Center for Chinese and Foreign Language Exchanges and Cooperation of the Ministry of Education of China, and the China University of Petroleum (Beijing, PRC) on the establishment of a joint Turkmen-Chinese Energy Training Center.