Turkmenistan: Meredov Books Three-Day Visit to Washington

Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov has scheduled a visit to the United States for June 22-25.

Meredov will discuss "the expansion of bilateral cooperation with political and business circles" in Washington, the semi-official Turkmenistan.ru reported on June 9. The announcement comes just a few days after President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov urged the Foreign Minister to reach out to Washington.

"I think that our next step should be the further expansion of relations with another big country, the United States of America," Berdymukhamedov said.

Turkmenistan and the United States do not have a bilateral investment agreement. Negotiations began in 1991 but were suspended in 1994. According to the US embassy in Ashgabat, the Turkmen government considered renewing talks in 1998, but no further action was taken.

A spokesman for the embassy said Meredov's itinerary was still being finalized, adding that details would be released later this week.