Turkmenistan
Geography - People - Economy - Government - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational IssuesCountry information - Turkmenistan
Country name - conventional long form : none
Country name - conventional short form : Turkmenistan
Country name - local long form : none
Country name - local short form : Turkmenistan
Country name - former : Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic
Country code : TX
Government type : republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside the executive branch
Capital - name : Ashgabat (Ashkhabad)
Capital - time difference : UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
National holiday : Independence Day, 27 October (1991)
Population : 5,179,571 (July 2008 est.)
Nationality - noun : Turkmen(s)
Nationality - adjective : Turkmenistani
Languages : Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%
Currency (code) : Turkmen manat (TMM)
Currency code : TMM
Major infectious diseases - degree of risk :
Major infectious diseases - note :
Turkmenistan is located Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan. The climate is subtropical desert. The terrain is flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west.
Background
This entry usually highlights major historic events and current issues and may include a statement about one or two key future trends.Background : Eastern Turkmenistan for centuries formed part of the Persian province of Khurasan; in medieval times Merv (today known as Mary) was one of the great cities of the Islamic world and an important stop on the Silk Road. Annexed by Russia between 1865 and 1885, Turkmenistan became a Soviet republic in 1924. It achieved independence upon the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. Extensive hydrocarbon/natural gas reserves could prove a boon to this underdeveloped country if extraction and delivery projects were to be expanded. The Turkmenistan Government is actively seeking to develop alternative petroleum transportation routes to break Russia's pipeline monopoly. President for Life Saparmurat NYYAZOW died in December 2006, and Turkmenistan held its first multi-candidate presidential electoral process in February 2007. Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW, a vice premier under NYYAZOW, emerged as the country's new president.
