Bill Clinton: “During their April 23, 1998 meeting in Washington, Presidents Clinton and Niyazov agreed to expand cooperation between…”

“During their April 23, 1998 meeting in Washington, Presidents Clinton and Niyazov agreed to expand cooperation between the United States and the Republic of Turkmenistan to promote its development as a market democracy. The United States strongly supports Turkmenistan's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and respects its neutrality. Through governmental and private sector partnerships, the United States and Turkmenistan aim to strengthen political, economic, security, commercial and agricultural ties for the benefit of both countries. Presidents Clinton and Niyazov agreed on the importance of rapid development of Caspian energy resources and efficient export routes to world markets to promote regional development. U.S. companies are deeply engaged in these activities and this engagement is growing. The two Presidents focused particular attention on strengthening east-west routes in the Eurasian transport corridor. They expressed their support for practical steps to develop a trans-Caspian pipeline as part of a multiple pipeline network. President Niyazov welcomed the support of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency to assess the feasibility of a trans-Caspian pipeline. In this context, the Presidents favor early resolution of the Caspian delimitation dispute. They welcomed the recent positive developments in the Afghanistan peace process, which could create new commercial opportunities and advance prospects for construction of a trans-Afghan pipeline.…”