President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov in a meeting Minister of State for Petroleum of Pakistan Musadik Masood Malik in Ashgabat on Tuesday discussed trade-economic cooperation between the countries, including the implementation of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, the official Turkmen media reports.
Pakistan’s Petroleum Minister conveyed to the Head of Turkmenistan cordial greetings from the leadership of his country President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif. He also reaffirmed Pakistan's commitment to its traditionally friendly relations with Turkmenistan.
Expressing gratitude for the kind words, President Berdimuhamedov conveyed greetings and best wishes to the leadership of Pakistan, noting with satisfaction the high level of mutual understanding and trust inherent in the interstate dialogue.
The official media report on the meeting stated the importance of the cooperation between the countries in fuel-energy sector. It added that the construction of TAPI pipeline, and laying of power lines and fiber-optic communications along the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) route is of particular importance.
The TAPI pipeline is expected to carry 33 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas each year along a route stretching 1,800 km from Galkynysh, the world's second-biggest gas field in Turkmenistan, to the Indian city of Fazilka near the Pakistan border.