OREANDA-NEWS. April 27, 2010. A ceremony of opening the German Library Fund created with the assistance of the RWE AG Company to help Turkmen students about the history of Turkmen-German relationships was conducted at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan. The high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, the representatives of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, the top managers of the RWE AG Company, Institute teachers and students took part in the ceremony.

The German Library Fund was opened on the initiative of President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov with the support of the RWE AG Company, which ranked among Turkmenistan’s old partners. It was noted that this action would be an important step to strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between two countries and promote education and culture.

The ceremony participants noted that friendly relations between Turkmenistan and Germany facilitated versatile partnership the profound potential of which should be used to improve the welfare and prosperity of the two nations. The Turkmen leader’s visit to Germany in November 2008 offered powerful incentives to foster cooperation. A series of the important meetings and talks held in Germany during the visit had opened up new opportunities expand and intensify traditional partnership.

The key aspects of bilateral relations included cooperation in the spheres of education and science. Training of young highly qualified specialists is a priority of the policy of the Turkmen state in the epoch of new Revival. Adopting advanced international standards in the national education system Turkmenistan closely collaborated with the UN, the EU member states, the leading research and educational centres across the world in the humanitarian sphere. The practical results of this collaboration included the projects implemented within the framework of the programmes such as TEMPUS, TACIS, DAAD.

The study of foreign languages plays an important role in training experts in international affairs. The English, Russian band German languages are taught at the Institute of International Relations of Turkmenistan. In particular, the foreign experts cooperating with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) provide profound assistance to the Institute students in studying the German language.

The German Library Fund includes over 3,500 books, methodological manuals, special literature, belletristic, encyclopedias and electronic collections of various educational programmes. The classrooms designed for the Library Fund are supplied with state-of-the-art equipment with access to the Internet.

The presentation participants noted that this concrete step to enhance educational and humanitarian cooperation would promote further and strengthen friendly relations between Turkmenistan and Germany.