Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov will not run at the presidential election in 2009. Niyazov made a statement at a meeting with OSCE chairman-in-office and Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel on Wednesday. Rupel asked the president whether he would register as a candidate at the upcoming presidential election. Niyazov noted that he would resign. According to Rupel, issues of political, economic and public life in Turkmenistan, functioning of non-governmental organisations were discussed at the meeting. Rupel got pledges that democratic principles will be put in practice in Turkmenistan. He voiced the hope that Turkmenistan would participate in the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting that the OSCE will organize in September. A Turkmen representative did not take part in these meetings for the last four years. The OSCE chairman-in-office voiced the hope that the situation would change this year. (ITAR-TASS)