President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has received Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan Abdulla Aripov, who arrived in Ashgabat to attend the CIS Council of Heads of Government. Appreciative of the personal audience, the head of the Uzbek government conveyed greetings to the Turkmen leader from President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who had also sent his wishes for well-being and prosperity to the entire Turkmen nation. Turkmenistan, said Abdulla Aripov, has once again demonstrated a responsible approach to international cooperation issues by hosting the meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of Government in Ashgabat and by the initiatives announced in an informative speech by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, which are aimed at widening the geographical and economic scope of CIS partnership. Warmly welcoming the guest and thanking him for the kind words, the Turkmen leader extended his best wishes to the friendly country’s leadership and brotherly people. The head of state highlighted Turkmenistan’s readiness to continuously expand the diversified interstate dialogue, built on the bonds of many-thousand-year friendship, shared history and culture, and trust-based cooperation that is taking on a qualitative new meaning. The head of state noted that Turkmenistan invariably advocates a constructive dialogue with other countries of the world both in bilateral and multilateral formats. Our country attaches much importance to looking for and developing new approaches and forms of cooperation on key issues of regional and world policy within international organizations, including the CIS. Collaboration within this organization is seen as an instrumental factor in maintaining stability, creating favorable conditions for mutually advantageous economic partnership. Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov continued, are cooperating successfully both in bilateral and multilateral formats, displaying their shared or similar attitudes towards vital issues on the regional and global agenda. Touching upon bilateral contacts, the President of Turkmenistan and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan exchanged their opinions on a broad spectrum of issues, relating to prospects for promoting the long-term Turkmen-Uzbek partner relations, and confirmed their countries’ willingness to diversify the mutually rewarding cooperation with its huge untapped potential in line with the dictates of the times. In this context, the parties recognized a positive contribution of the Intergovernmental Turkmen-Uzbek Commission for Trade-Economic, Scientific-Technical and Cultural Cooperation to implementing agreements reached at all levels. As stressed, the two countries attach overriding importance to closer cooperation in addressing the region’s common problems, among which are the efforts to save the Aral Sea and ensure sustainable water use, seen as very crucial matters. The sides emphasized the significance of jointly implemented large-scale infrastructure projects, first and foremost, the under-construction new transit corridor that will enable to gain quick access to the seaports of Iran, Oman and India and will help to unlock the potential for further growth of trade, transit and investments. Successful collaboration in the humanitarian field was identified as particularly important as well. It is based on the historical commonality of cultural and spiritual traditions, which have linked the two peoples for centuries. Concluding the reception, the head of state and his guest expressed confidence that this meeting held as part of the CIS Council of Heads of Government would be another key milestone on the road towards optimizing the cooperation between Turkmenistan and the Republic of Uzbekistan, and a meaningful contribution to fostering a climate of trust and understanding in the region. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Uzbekistan to Turkmenistan A. Kuchkarov also attended the meeting.