OREANDA-NEWS. July 18, 2012. Today was a telephone conversation between President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso.

During the meeting the President and President of the European Commission exchanged views on prospects for bilateral cooperation in such key areas it as political, trade-economic, humanitarian and cultural spheres. Separate topic of discussion was cooperation in the energy sector which is important for ever-growing needs of the EU Member States in energy and for Turkmenistan's strategy of diversifying the routes of its energy resources to world markets to provide for the creation of multiple pipeline infrastructures. The European Commission President said that in Europe greats this forward-looking strategy as well as put forward by the Turkmen leader international initiatives on the formation of a new, responsive to modern realities, global energy security.

Discussing the theme of energy cooperation the parties recognized the importance of joint efforts in promoting issues related to ensuring global energy security. In this regard Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov emphasized the need to establish as soon as the expert group to develop a new international legal mechanism to ensure the reliability and stability of energy supplies to world markets.

Mutual commitment to develop a mechanism to ensure the delivery of Turkmen energy resources to Europe was confirmed during the official visit of President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso in Turkmenistan at the beginning of last year. In particular, agreement was reached on the need to create a sound legal framework aimed at defining the basic principles and conditions for long-term partnership in this area. To achieve this goal was created a working group of high-level comprising officials of the governments of all interested parties: the producer, transit and consumer. To date has been held several rounds of negotiations within the specified group.

In this regard during the telephone conversation President of Turkmenistan agreed with idea to hold a regular meeting of the above-mentioned working group in September in Ashgabat.

President of the European Commission invited the President of Turkmenistan to visit Brussels where the headquarters of the EU is based at any time convenient to him. This invitation was accepted with gratitude. Dates of the visit will be agreed through diplomatic channels.