Foreign Minister Eli Cohen established Israel’s new permanent embassy in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on Thursday. The two countries have had diplomatic ties for 30 years, but the establishment of a permanent embassy is an advancement from the previous temporary Israeli mission in Ashgabat. Cohen tweeted that the new embassy is just “17 kilometers from the border with Iran” and his Turkmen counterpart, Rashid Meredov, commented on this “shining example of our friendship.”
Turkmenistan has large hydrocarbon deposits in the Caspian Sea and exports the majority of its gas to China, its primary economic partner. Despite their proximity, Turkmenistan conducts relatively little trade with Iran due to territorial disputes in the Caspian Sea. The five Caspian states signed a convention in 2018 settling these disputes, but Tehran has not ratified the document, thereby impeding Ashgabat’s plans for a European pipeline through the Caspian Sea. The Central Asian country has maintained a strict neutrality policy and avoided membership in international political or military organizations, but Cohen commented on his excitement to work with Turkmenistan in the fields of “agriculture, water, technology and border defense.”
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