Turkmenistan has assured Russia it will take measures to improve the situation for its Russian-speaking citizens, Deputy Foreign Minister Yury Fedotov told Interfax. He said that, taking these assurances in account, Russia \"considered it proper\" to abstain from voting on a resolution on violation of human rights in Turkmenistan during the 60th session of the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva. \"We based this decision on the fact that so-called country resolutions, especially in the UN\'s Human Rights Commission, will hardly improve the real situation,\" Fedotov said. \"That is why the Russian diplomacy focuses on individually working with the countries that problems arise in, including the problem of Russian-speaking citizens.\" Concerning Turkmenistan, he said that, \"On a number of concerns that were expressed by our side, we received assurances that the necessary steps will be taken to improve the situation surrounding our citizens in Turkmenistan,\" he said. Commenting on today\'s resolution on Turkmenistan, Fedotov noted that \"it is possible that this question will arise in the fall, during the 59th session of the UN\'s General Assembly.\" \"Then we will make our decision, taking into account all the factors, firstly the real situation of Russian-speaking citizens\' rights,\" Fedotov said. On April 10, 2003, a Russian-Turkmen protocol was signed on the suspension of an agreement on settling several issues of double citizenship, which had been signed in 1993. Later, the Turkmen president unilaterally signed a decree stating that people with dual citizenship should choose one within two months. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated several times that Russia still considers the 1993 agreement active, and considers that the expiration protocol is not retroactive, and is designed to regulate citizenship issues that may only arise after the protocol comes into effect. (Interfax)