On the sidelines of the 31st OSCE Ministerial Council in Valletta, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Mahri Bashimova held talks on a number of issues. This was reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

At a meeting with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus Andreas Kakouris, she discussed bilateral relations in the political and diplomatic sphere. During the meeting, readiness was expressed to strengthen the legal framework of the partnership between the two countries.

The parties agreed to work on drafts of relevant Memorandums of Understanding between the foreign ministries to conduct political consultations in the future. The diplomats expressed their readiness to facilitate the establishment of a dialogue between the responsible departments of the two countries on the development of trade and industrial cooperation.

M. Bashimova also met with Michael Siebert, Managing Director of the European External Action Service for Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia and the OSCE.

The parties discussed a wide range of issues related to bilateral and multilateral cooperation. The importance of existing mechanisms of interaction, including the Turkmenistan-EU Joint Committee, human rights dialogue and inter-parliamentary dialogue, was emphasized.

Particular attention was paid to strengthening ties between the EU and Central Asia. In this context, the parties touched upon the issue of organizing the next meeting of heads of foreign policy agencies in the EU-CA format in Turkmenistan next year, the source notes.