Ashgabat, February 25, 2025 – The Europe Today: Rashid Meredov, the Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan, met with Rabab Fatima, the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, in Ashgabat on Monday to discuss preparations for the upcoming Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC3). The conference is scheduled to take place in the second half of this year, with Turkmenistan serving as the host country.
During the meeting, both parties underscored the importance of the LLDC3 conference, which aims to address key challenges faced by landlocked developing countries, such as sustainable development, enhancing transport and digital connectivity, and ensuring food and environmental security. The talks also focused on the organization of the event and the preparation of critical documents, including final reports and other essential materials.
In addition to the discussions on the conference, Minister Meredov and Deputy Secretary-General Fatima highlighted Turkmenistan’s ongoing strategic cooperation with the UN and its specialized agencies. The talks also emphasized Turkmenistan’s contribution to global peace efforts, particularly through the declaration of 2025 as the International Year of Peace and Trust by the UN General Assembly, a resolution proposed by Turkmenistan.
The meeting also acknowledged the shared challenges of landlocked developing countries, which collectively have a population of over 500 million people. These nations often face unique economic and logistical hurdles due to their geographic isolation from major international trade routes.
Both sides expressed their commitment to ensuring the success of the LLDC3 conference and to further strengthening Turkmenistan’s collaboration with the United Nations to address the pressing issues facing landlocked developing countries around the world.
