Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Apr.2 / Trend, H. Hasanov /
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon will meet with Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov early today in Ashgabat.
"The talks will be an important step in expanding productive dialogue between Turkmenistan and the U.N. - filling the dialogue with new content meeting everyone's interests," a Turkmen state press service reported.
Ki-Moon visit the U.N. Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia headquartered in the Turkmen capital.
U.N. Secretary General Special Representative Miroslav Jenca, who heads the center, told journalists in Ashgabat that Ki-Moon will hold talks with senior authorities on regional issues during Central his Asia tour and assess the status and prospects of U.N. cooperation.
The regional U.N. agenda includes issues assisting Central Asian states in their efforts to join the international community's agenda to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan, U.N. interaction with international and regional organizations and nuclear weapons non-proliferation.
Aspects of ecological security and natural resources use will also be discussed.
"The secretary general plans to visit the Aral Sea and to discuss efforts to improve the ecological situation with regional leaders," Jenca said in an interview with the Turkmen Dovlet Habarlari state news agency.
According to the U.N. employee, combating threats such as transnational crime will be discussed.
"The region is affected also by factors such as the global financial crisis, although its effects are not the same for all Central Asian states," Jenca said.