The US president, Joe Biden, defended the territorial integrity of Central Asia on Saturday against a possible Russian threat, in a telegram sent to the leader of Turkmenistan, Serdar Berdimuhamedov, on the eve of the legislative elections in this Central Asian country.
Biden expressed his support “for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Central Asia”, a region recently visited by the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.
The US president highlighted the solidity of bilateral relations since the independence of the republic bathed by the Caspian Sea in 1991, and congratulated the Turkmen people on the “Nowruz” holiday, which celebrates the arrival of spring.
Central Asian countries have not adhered to Western sanctions against Russia after Moscow’s war against Ukraine, but they advocate a diplomatic solution and do not support Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian regions, which has even been publicly rejected by Kazakhstan.
However, the five countries of Central Asia – Cazaquistão, Usbequistão, Turquemenistão, Tajiquistão and Quirguistão – abstained or would not vote for the resolution of the General Assembly of the UN adopted a month ago to urge Russia to withdraw its troops and finally the war.
Central Asia is considered Russia’s “backyard” and is the only region, with the exception of Iran, that Russian President Vladimir Putin has traveled to since fighting broke out in Ukraine in February 2022.
Of the five Central Asian countries, Tajikistan is the only one to have signed and ratified the Rome treaty on the International Criminal Court, which issued an arrest warrant for Putin.
Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan have also signed but have not ratified it, while Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have never signed.
Turkmenistan, often compared to North Korea for its authoritarian and secretive regime, holds parliamentary elections on Sunday, in which 3.5 million voters can vote.
Source: TSF
