Ashgabat:On May 20, 2021, in the building of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan in honor of the 140th anniversary of the founding of the city of Ashgabat, a Conference of Mayors of Friendly and Sister Cities of Ashgabat was held in a hybrid format.

The event was opened by the rector of the Turkmen State Institute of Architecture and Civil Engineering P. Orazov.

Thanking everyone for their active participation, the khyakim of Ashgabat Y. Gylydjev noted that the capital of Turkmenistan was recognized as a friendly, hospitable, beautiful city from an architectural point of view. He spoke about the architectural project “Ashgabat City”. Briefly telling about the rich history of Ashgabat, the khyakim emphasized the political authority of the capital, where the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia is located, which holds large-scale events of international importance.

During his speech, Minister of Culture of Turkmenistan A. Shamuradov quoted several lines from the book of the President of Turkmenistan “Ashgabat- The White City”, spoke about major cultural events that have taken place and are planned in the capital. He especially emphasized the admission of Ashgabat to the membership of the World Federation of Tourist Cities, and also spoke about the objects included in the Guinness Book of Records.

Deputy Mayor of the City of Kabul of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan S. Sidigi, Mayor of Baku City E. Aziz ogly Azizov, Secretary General of the People’s Government of the Municipality of Lanzhou City of the People’s Republic of China Z. Chenghu, Mayor of Tashkent City Dj. Artykhojayev, Deputy Mayor of Nur-Sultan City E. Kizatov, acting head of the Agency for International Relations of the Astrakhan Region of the Russian Federation A. Aydin, Chairman of the Committee for External Relations of the Government of Saint-Petersburg of the Russian Federation E. Grigoryev, Deputy Head of the Department of Foreign Economic and International Relations of the City of Moscow of the Russian Federation O. Shutenko made their presentations by means of videoconferencing.

The speakers noted that Ashgabat is one of the most beautiful cities in Central Asia, rich in historical past and has now become a world-class metropolis, a national center for technological progress and innovation. They noted the bilateral relations between the cities, built on mutual friendship, support and interaction in various areas of the urban economy. The speakers also stressed that they especially value the established ties of friendship and mutual understanding with Ashgabat.

At the meeting, the participants also heard video messages from the Mayor of Albuquerque City of the USA T.Keller, Mayor of Tendo City of Japan Sh.Yamamoto, Mayor of Ankara City M.Yavash, Deputy Mayor of Bishkek City V. Mozgacheva.

During her speech, the Executive Secretary of the National Commission of Turkmenistan for UNESCO Ch.Rustamova spoke about the unique design, the progressive transformation of the capital, which in a short time has become a real “pearl” of Central Asia. She noted that in 2020 Ashgabat applied to join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the design direction, which was officially adopted by the UNESCO Secretariat.

The event was also attended by the Mayors of Chişinau, Beijing, Istanbul, Vienna, Yerevan.

The meeting participants were shown a video about the achievements of the Turkmen capital.

At the end of the event, an Address was adopted to the Esteemed President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov on behalf of the participants of the International Conference of Mayors of Friendly and Sister Cities of Ashgabat, dedicated to the 140th anniversary of the founding of Ashgabat.