On November 13, Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov paid a five-day state visit to Germany and Austria. Domestically, Berdimuhammedov’s visits to these European countries, accompanied by a state delegation of 170 people, have largely been viewed as a major breakthrough in Turkmenistan’s foreign relations. However, for these tours to become helpful for Turkmenistan’s economy and its population, tangible and concrete reform needs to be pursued domestically as well.

On the first day of the visit, a Turkmen-German economic forum took place in the Adlon hotel in Berlin. Berdimuhammedov delivered a speech in German and a presentation on investment opportunities in Turkmenistan to an audience of German and European company representatives. In particular, the Turkmen leader called for participation in projects in Turkmenistan’s energy and agricultural sectors. Referring to the natural gas reserves of eastern Turkmenistan recently audited by the British firm Gaffney, Cline & Associates, Berdimuhamedov said the audit results once again proved Turkmenistan’s position as one of the world’s potentially biggest energy producers. At a press conference after her meeting with the Turkmen leader, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told the reporters that there is a “significant potential” for both sides to cooperate in the energy sector, and that Germany is willing to help Turkmenistan use this potential to enhance the country’s infrastructure in the gas and oil sectors in particular. Within this context, the German Chancellor also spoke of closer cooperation in the development of joint projects in transport and engineering.

Currently, Turkmenistan exports around 50 bcm of natural gas to Russia, 8 bcm to Iran and is planning to pump 30 bcm to China from October 2009. It is also in the process of negotiating the trans-Afghan pipeline that will take Turkmen blue fuel to India through Pakistan. Diversifying the export routes for its energy resources is one of Berdimuhammedov’s prioritized policies, and reducing Europe’s dependence on Russia’s gas is in Germany’s interest as well. The export of 10 bcm of gas to Europe annually through Baku was agreed during Berdimuhammedov’s previous visit to Brussels but the Nabucco pipeline, intended to transport Caspian gas to Europe, appears to be far from realization, especially after the war in the Caucasus. But according to high-ranking government officials who met Berdimuhamedov in Berlin, Germany’s interests in Turkmenistan are not limited to natural gas only, but involves buying fuel and providing services in the energy sector as well. This was especially noted by the German Minister of Economy and Technologies Michael Gloss, who visited Turkmenistan in February 2008: “As far as Turkmenistan with its vast oil and gas resources is concerned, German business circles are particularly interested in cooperation in the sphere of fuel and energy.”

The Turkmen-German partnership appeared to have reached a new level as Berdimuhammedov received a series of new business offers at a business forum with the heads of big German and international companies such as BMW, Siemens, AGFA, MAN, EADS and Microsoft in Munich. Berdimuhammedov said that Turkmenistan has positive experience of cooperation with German companies, and would favor their further expansion on the Turkmen market. According to foreign media sources, more than forty German firms are currently active in the country. Siemens Medical, one of the world’s leading companies, has long been providing the clinics, diagnostic centers and hospitals in Ashgabat with high quality equipment and medical supplies. A medical doctor by profession, President Berdimuhammedov was thoroughly interested in the exposition “Medical Equipment of Tomorrow” organized during the Turkmen delegation’s visit.     

During talks on investment in the Turkmen economy, the Turkmen leader also emphasized the strategic importance of Germany’s contribution to the development of Turkmenistan’s education sector. The German scientists participating in the forum also expressed their specific ideas for reforming the educational system in Turkmenistan, and the Turkmen leader announced the opening a Turkmen-German university in Ashgabat.

The President’s visit to Germany and his agreements with the German government did not take place without criticism from human rights watchdogs. Marianne Heuwagen, the head of Human Rights Watch in Germany, said Chancellor Angela Merkel should have stressed human rights violations in Turkmenistan and expressed her disappointment with Merkel’s “apathy” toward the Turkmen leader. But considering the financial crisis and Europe’s growing need for energy resources, raising issues of human rights and civil society development in Turkmenistan appears to be off the agenda for the time being.

All in all, whether the President’s tour of Europe will bring about changes will depend on how the presidential subordinates at a ministerial level implement the agreements reached in Germany and Austria. President Berdimuhammedov has been concluding grandiose agreements in all of his state visits lately, but little has been done in implementing those agreements in the country. Moreover, specific measures in guaranteeing investor rights also need to be taken to bring European investors to Ashgabat.