Turkmenistan has become more active on the international stage in the past few years, breaking from the borderline isolationist foreign policy that it pursued for most of its independent existence and attracting more attention from the major powers. Turkmenistan’s increased international presence is driven by factors including its natural gas reserves, location on the Caspian bordering Afghanistan and Iran, and position astride both east–west and north–south trade corridors. Tribalism, neo-Sovietism, and the government’s commitment to Turkism rather than Islam are among the factors likely to shape Turkmenistan’s foreign policy as its profile rises in global forums.
Turkmenistan Becoming More Active on World Stage – Jamestown
