Foreign
FOLLOWING a rumour in June that the president of the insular former Soviet republic of Turkmenistan had died, he still has not made an independently verifiable public appearance.
Definitive proof should come within the next few days as the Central Asian republic on the Caspian Sea hosts a major regional economic forum, initiated by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov.
He is scheduled to meet with Russian Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev at the Caspian Economic Forum in the port city of Turkmenbashi, according to a statement by the Russian side.
“The Caspian forum is starting tomorrow and this is his baby so we will know for sure tomorrow,’’ said Chris Weafer, a senior partner at the Eurasia-focused investment firm Macro-Advisory, on Tuesday.
“The question remains, why and to where did he disappear, knowing that the fact of his absence would cause such controversy’’ Weafer told dpa in emailed comments.
Last month, a rumour emerged that 62-year-old Berdymukhamedov, who has maintained an authoritarian grip on Turkmenistan for more than a decade, had succumbed to kidney failure.
The rumour gained ground on July 21 when Moscow radio station, Govorit Moskva, quoted Eurasian political expert, Aslan Rubayev, as saying he learned of the death from sources in the Turkmen capital Ashgabat.
Turkmenistan’s government has denied the rumour as an absolute lie and stated that the leader has been on holiday.
A video purportedly of the holiday shows a quite alive Berdymukhamedov riding a horse, training troops and playing piano.
He was also seen driving a jeep through the desert to a perpetually burning natural gas crater in central Turkmenistan.
The Darvaza crater is colloquially known as the Gates of Hell.
Repeated calls to the phone number listed on the Turkmenistan presidential website on Tuesday went unanswered.
-NAN
BE
– Aug. 6, 2019 @ 16:09 GMT |
Tags: Rumour of Turkmenistan leader’s death persists ahead of major forum
