Turkmenistan’s Foreign Ministry hosted a meeting with Indonesia’s Iran-based Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador Octaviano Alimuddin, the Turkmen ministry said.
During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on opportunities to intensify mutually beneficial trade and economic relations between enterprises, companies and entrepreneurs of the two countries.
The parties also discussed prospects of bilateral cooperation in political, trade and economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres, in particular, the possibilities to boost cooperation in the areas of tourism, sports, education, culture and art.
Indonesia has long been interested in the Turkmen market.
In mid-1990s, Indonesia Petroleum Ltd (INPEX) acquired shares in gas pipeline consortium in the construction project of the pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan. However, the project has been suspended due to the instability in the transit territory – Afghanistan.
Over the recent years, Ashgabat and other countries revived this project.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) financed the project’s feasibility analysis and India joined it as an interested consumer of Turkmen gas that provided additional chances for the transnational project’s implementation.
Currently, Bangladesh is also interested in participation in the project. (Trend/Business World Magazine)