ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, April 22. Turkmenistan
has proposed developing a new UN General Assembly resolution on
cooperation with the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea
(IFAS), President Serdar Berdimuhamedov said at a meeting of the
Council of Heads of State of IFAS founding countries, Trend reports.
Berdimuhamedov emphasized that the summit is taking place in
challenging geopolitical conditions and called for ensuring that
key regional issues are not relegated to the background.
“The saving of the Aral Sea, its future, and the fate of people
living in the region are a political and moral responsibility of
our countries,” he said.
The Turkmen president recalled that during Turkmenistan’s
chairmanship in IFAS in 2017–2019, Ashgabat focused on advancing
practical initiatives. In particular, UN resolutions on cooperation
with IFAS were adopted in 2018 and 2019 at Turkmenistan’s
initiative. In May 2023, a resolution of the UN Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) was also adopted to
support the establishment of a UN Special Programme for the Aral
Sea region.
He also noted ongoing work on the fourth phase of the Aral Sea
Basin Program aimed at assisting countries in the region.
Berdimuhamedov announced that a UN Regional Center for Climate
Technologies for Central Asia, initiated by Turkmenistan, will soon
begin operations in Ashgabat.
According to him, the Aral Sea crisis cannot be addressed in
isolation from broader challenges such as desertification, glacier
melting, and transboundary water management, stressing that
environmental security must be considered alongside social and
economic development.
In this context, Turkmenistan proposed jointly developing a new
UN General Assembly resolution on IFAS cooperation, taking into
account current geopolitical and economic changes.
