There was nothing important in the news. In the morning TV reports, scenes from my program were shown, but it was not the defiant state of the horse, rather the view of my calm riding. Then Mr. Niyazov said that he had instructed that part not to be shown. Before having breakfast, it was announced that Mr. Niyazov had come to the residence.
There was nothing important in the news. In the morning TV reports, scenes from my program were broadcast, but it was not that state of the horse's stubbornness, rather the scene of my calm mounting. Later, Mr. Niyazov said that he had ordered that part not to be included.
Before breakfast, they informed me that Mr. Niyazov had arrived at the residence. Without having breakfast, we set off for the airport with him, and from there, we flew toward Merv, seen off by top-tier officials. We had various discussions on the way, including him mentioning that during Gorbachev's time, he was asked to bring Soviet Communist Party funds into Turkmenistan through coordination with an Israeli bank and keep them under the cover of an agricultural company, but he did not accept. He said he guesses it was about 15 billion dollars, and it is unclear where it was spent.
At the Merv airport and on the roads around Merv, we received a very magnificent public welcome, and especially the children's programs and their greetings were interesting; they were performed with beautiful phrases, poems, and sentences in Persian, Turkmen, and English, delivered with appropriate recitations. Everywhere we encountered trays of bread and salt, which Turkmen elders offered to guests according to their tradition, and we had to take a bite. We did not pass in front of the Russian welcomers at the airport who were in part of the line upon our arrival; because they had arranged the carpet path in a way that did not pass in front of them, but at the time of farewell when we passed in front of all the lines, I saw they were Russians, men, women, and children, and they became very happy. Surprisingly, they themselves had not noticed, and later Mr. Niyazov thanked me for this attentiveness.
From Merv, we moved toward the village of "Rafsanjani," which they had named after me in the past. Everywhere along the route, we faced massive waves of enthusiastic welcomers. We passed several factories under construction, which they said are being built with investment from Italy, America, or Turkey. The Governor of Merv gave good explanations about the agricultural, industrial, and social situation of the province and said that today, the delivery of 420,000 tons of the province's cotton to the government, which
Photo of the Central Asia trip
Photo of the Central Asia trip
was mandated in the plan, has been completed, and the rest of the product remains cheaply in the hands of the people. He expressed great satisfaction with the government's successful policies in self-sufficiency and the growth of wheat, cotton, and meat production.
In the village of "Rafsanjani," they had a good ceremony. A warm welcome and speeches by several old men in Khorasani Persian, expressing joy at the collapse of the Iron Curtain and the re-establishment of relations with the people of Iran, and requesting the development of roads for ease of travel to Iran, and the start of construction work for a mosque on the occasion of our presence, with the laying of several bricks by me and Mr. Niyazov, and then a good welcome by the regional governor, a detailed speech by me, and a short speech by Niyazov; a good program was executed.
On the return path, in a desert guesthouse, they had organized a good banquet and served various good local foods in a tent and gave gifts; including carpets on which the dedicatory phrase of Rafsanjani village was written.
On the return path, we also had many welcomers. We flew toward the Khwarezm region, the city of "Dashoguz." There, too, the welcome was warm, similar to Merv, and with new initiatives, they gifted a camel and a baby camel in the city square and held artistic ceremonies. They performed a celebration for the successful conclusion of the cotton production program. Mr. Niyazov, I, and the governor spoke in turn. Then we flew by helicopters toward the city of "Urgench" to see historical monuments. It is a capable region. A canal brings 60 cubic meters of water per second from the Jeyhun River here, which has caused them to have extensive development activities, and it will soon become very prosperous. They said the project started during the Soviet era and was recently completed.
In "Urgench," we also had a vast public welcome. We prayed in the guesthouse of a factory. They served an afternoon snack similar to lunch. Then several historical monuments from the Khwarazmian era were visited. The tomb of Najmuddin Kubra, which they said is the burial place of 360 famous mystics. A massive 65-meter minaret, which they said is the largest minaret in the world after the Delhi mosque minaret. We saw a few other places; they have been poorly maintained. It was decided to create a joint working group to identify them. At the beginning of the night, we returned to Ashgabat and, due to fatigue, canceled the private dinner program we had with the President.
Almost during the entire stay, Mr. Niyazov was with me, and on the routes, in the car and private meetings, at lunch, dinner, and snack tables, we talked continuously. He did not hesitate to tell secrets and consulted on important issues. Overall, he is upset with the Russians, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, and a kind of enmity and lack of trust prevails between them.He also has a fear of conspiracy and does not trust Mr. Aliyev, considering him a subordinate of Russia, but he acts out of expediency due to the current conditions and the situation in Karabakh and [Azerbaijan's war with] the Armenians. He even explains their statements in private meetings and during their wine drinking. One of the issues they discussed is Turkmenistan's closer ties to Iran, which they do not like. He says that in negotiations such as the Caspian Sea, fundamentalism, Islamism, and interference in their internal affairs, he is a supporter of Islam.
Dr. Velayati complained about not being present in private negotiations, but he knew that this was their request. They had also arranged interesting programs for Effat and her companions; sometimes separately and sometimes along with us. Overall, it seems that many countries, even Libya, are busy investing in Turkmenistan in building hotels and shops, but we have not utilized the existing capacity and facilities.
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