OREANDA-NEWS. October 17, 2011. The Turkmen-Austrian business forum was held at the Mizan Business Centre in Ashgabat in the framework of the top level talks between President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and Federal President of the Republic of Austria Heinz Fischer.

The impressive representation of the Austrian delegations consisting of representatives of over 30 companies specializing in the spheres of oil and gas production, design and construction, finance and investment, information and communications technologies, health care, trade and publishing testified to Austria’s keen interest in enhancing business partnerships with Turkmenistan.

This meeting gained the special status due to the participation of Federal President of the Republic of Austria Heinz Fischer. Turkmenistan was represented at the forum by the cabinet ministers, representatives of the Turkmen ministries and departments and the Union of Manufacturers and Industrialists.

In his opening remarks President Heinz Fischer said the top level talks were productive and expressed belief that the business forum would offer a new impetus to broaden Turkmen-Austrian cooperation and significantly contribute to strengthening the ties of friendship and mutual understanding between Turkmenistan and Austria. Holding regular meetings between the business circles of the two countries acquires particular significance in the context of the implementation of top level agreements, noted the President of the Republic of Austria wishing forum participants the fruitful work. Addressing the Turkmen side, the distinguished guest focused on the impressive results of the independent audit of the reserves of the unique block of Southern Yoloten-Osman, Minara and Yashlar gas fields conducted by the Gaffney, Cline & Associates firm. Congratulating Turkmenistan on the gas reserves estimated on a global scale, Mr. Heinz Fischer underlined this sensational news was of historic significance to the whole mankind.

An exchange of views on the current state and prospects of Turkmen-Austrian economic cooperation, which had been initiated during the official visit of President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov to Austria in the autumn of 2008 and was currently being brought to a qualitatively new level took place between participants. The forum agenda focused on the ways to expand cooperation in the whole spectrum of fields, in particular including the fuel and energy, industrial, trade, transport and communications, hi-tech and alternative energy sectors.

As is known, Europe is a priority of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy strategy. In particular, special attention is paid to promotion of multifaceted cooperation with Austria that is bound with Turkmenistan by bilateral mutually beneficial relations in a wide range of fields. Turkmenistan and Austria viewing each other as important and dependable partners take consistent steps to enrich the experience and potential of bilateral cooperation.

Meeting participants noted that the favourable conditions for effective operation of foreign companies and substantial benefits for foreign businesses which offered good incentives to intensify and expand bilateral cooperation were the outcomes of the far-sighted policy initiated by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. it was also noted that the Protocol on cooperation enhancement between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan and the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber signed during the top level talks would facilitate the implementation of the assigned plans and the development of new joint projects.

Turkmen participants made the presentations on the current microeconomic situation in the country, the investment climate, the progress in implementing the entrepreneurship development strategy in Turkmenistan and the prospects of cooperation with the Republic of Austria giving a clear view of the scale of the ongoing changes which lay the foundations for the integration of the country in the global economic system and opened up vast opportunities to expand international cooperation.

In particular, emphasis was put on the tremendous potential to further mutually beneficial partnership between Turkmenistan and the Austrian business circles. In this regard, the businessmen of the friendly country expressed the willingness to foster full cooperation with Turkmenistan that had won worldwide reputation of being a promising and depednbale partner.

The representatives of Austrian companies expressed the readiness to take an active part in the ongoing projects in Turkmenistan, including in the fuel and energy, transport and communications, information and telecommunications sectors, etc.

Over 120 bilateral meetings were held in a constructive and businesslike atmosphere between the representatives of ministries and departments and private companies and entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan and the Republic of Austria within the framework of the forum. These meetings provided the platform for establishing new contacts, considering the prospects for cooperation and identifying plans for the future.

Noting that Turkmen-Austrian cooperation built on mutual confidence and benefit was dynamically developed, forum participants expressed belief that cooperation between the two countries would be strengthened and promoted further and focused on the need to conduct meetings of this kind on a regular basis in order to elaborate joint approaches to forming a unified platform for fruitful collaboration.