Iran Tracker

Nuclear:

In July 2008, the Turkmen Foreign Minister, Rasit Meredow, said that his country supports Iran’s peaceful nuclear research program.[1] In addition, in a conference in 2007, the five states bordering the Caspian Sea—Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan—declared that they would all support one another’s’ rights to peaceful nuclear programs[2]: "the parties confirm the inalienable right of all states- signatories to the treaty on the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons to develop research and the production and utilization of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination and within the framework of the provisions spelt out in this treaty, as well as those of the International Atomic Energy Agency mechanism."[3]

[Click here for more information on the Caspian Sea states.]

Economic Relationship:

Iran and Turkmenistan are neighbors and trade in a number of sectors. Bilateral trade between Iran and Turkmenistan reached $1.7 billion in 2007, over $1.4 billion of which consisted of Iranian exports to Turkmenistan.[4] Much of Iran’s exports to its neighbor consist of foodstuffs, healthcare equipment, automobiles, and advanced technological goods.[5] The two countries have also discussed expanding cultural cooperation and agreed in December 2008 for the Islamic Republic to work with Turkmenistan in developing some of the Asian country’s large gas fields.[6] In March 2009, the two neighbors’ friendly relations were disrupted when Iran threatened to file a lawsuit against the Turkmen government for cutting off gas supplies to Iran during the winter of 2008-2009 unless Turkmenistan compensated for the loss. Turkmenistan claimed that the suspension was due to technical reasons and not a political disagreement.[7] According to a contract that the two countries agreed on, Turkmenistan is required to increase gas exports to Iran by 10 billion cubic meters in 2009.[8]

In a March 2009 meeting of the ten-nation Economic Cooperation Organization, Iran and Turkmenistan discussed free trade and called for the swift completion of a rail line between Kazakhstan and Iran via Turkmenistan.[9] Iranian Deputy Energy Minister for Water and Wastewater Affairs Mohammadreza Attarzadeh and Turkmen Water Industry Minister Annageldi Yazmyradov met to discuss cooperation on energy and water issues. For his part, Yazmyradov called on Iranian companies to increase their participation in agricultural and water projects.[10] In May 2009, Iran agreed to develop Turkmenistan’s Yolotan gas field, located in the eastern part of the country.[11] According to a May 2009 statement from the Iranian ambassador to Turkmenistan, Mohammad-Reza Forqani, Turkmenistan is Iran’s largest trade partner in Central Asia, with trade expanding by $3.3 billion for 2009, a 40 percent compared to 2008 levels.[12] In June 2009, Forqani noted that one Iranian firm was even spending $100 million on four different projects inside of Turkmenistan.[13]

Turkmenistan announced in July 2009 that Ashgabat and Tehran have agreed to significantly expand Turkmen gas exports to Iran, raising the yearly traded volume from 8 billion cubic meters to 14 billion. The increase will be transported via a new pipeline from the Dauletabad field to Iran, though Dauletabad had previously been reserved exclusively for deliveries to Russia.[14] According to an August 2009 announcement by Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Baimyrat Khodjamukhammedov, the pipeline will be operational by the end of 2009.[15]  In October 2009, Iranian Oil Minister Massoud Mir Kazemi announced that Iran will increase its import of Turkmen natural gas from 25 million cubic meters to 33 million cubic meters daily beginning in mid December 2009.[16]

The Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad inaugurated the second gas pipeline project for importing Turkmenistan gas to Iran as well as the new south-north railway during his trip to Ashgabat on January 5-6.[17] The 31 km pipeline will deliver Turkmen gas at the Dovlatabad field to Sarakhs, an Iranian border town, enabling the latter to free its own gas for exports to international market. Annamammad Mammadov, the Turkmen envoy to Azerbaijan, said the Iran-Turkmenistan pipeline was indicative of his country's policy of energy diversity.[18] President Ahmadinejad, on the other hand, said that the new gas pipeline and Iran-Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan railway projects will cause a major change in regional energy and trade ties. He noted that the new gas pipeline will play a key role in energy exchange with Europe and the Persian Gulf region.[19] Both countries are poised to join the NABUCCO pipeline project, which will transport gas from the region to European markets.[20]

Tehran's envoy to Turkmenistan announced in February 2010 that Iranian experts will construct a railway to link Iran to the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. "During the recent visit to Turkmenistan by the president of the Islamic Republic, the construction project of Atrak-Barakat-Gorgan was approved and the construction operation will be started by Iranian experts soon," Iran's Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohammad Reza Forqani said. He also noted that the project is worth $700 million and will come online in two years.[21]

Diplomatic/Military Relationship:

In July 2008, Foreign Minister Meredow of Turkmenistan said that relations with Iran were friendly and praised Iran for its peaceful nuclear research.[22] Turkmenistan and Iran have agreed to cooperate internationally, agreeing in June 2007 to set up a joint commission to combat drug trafficking from Afghanistan.[23] In addition, Iran and Turkmenistan are both members of the groups of Caspian Sea littoral states, and have used this forum for multilateral cooperation. Both Turkmenistan and Iran have stated that rights to the Caspian Sea’s resources should be redistributed into five equal parts between the littoral states.[24] As two of the five Caspian Sea states, Iran and Turkmenistan agreed in a joint declaration in 2007 that they "under no circumstances will allow the use of their territories by other states for an aggression or other military actions against any of the parties."[25] In an April 2009 meeting, Iranian Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohammad-Reza Forqani indicated Iran’s willingness to supply Turkmenistan’s needs in the field of defense. Turkmen Minister of Defense Yaylim Berdiyev also argued in April 2009 in favor of increasing bilateral cooperation.[26]

Iranian Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohammadreza Forgani told Turkmen media in Feburary 2010 during celebrations of the 31st anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution that Iran “attaches great importance to friendly, brotherly Turkmenistan" in its foreign relations and that "our bilateral relations are exemplary among regional countries.” Forgani referenced that bilateral trade between Iran and Turkmenistan reached $3.2 billion in 2009, which deserves "special mention," the diplomat said. Forgani added that the two countries have signed over 160 bilateral documents on cooperation in the past, and that "there has been significant success in strengthening economic cooperation, including cooperation in the energy, oil and gas industry, and the transit of electricity in the area of transport and industry.[27]