This article covers the diplomatic relationship between India and Turkmenistan: recognition and the establishment of relations, the dialogue mechanisms, visits by leaders and ministers, and cooperation at the United Nations and in the India-Central Asia format. It is based on the MEA brief of June 2026 and reflects the position as of that date.

Establishment of relations

According to the MEA brief of June 2026, India was among the first countries to recognise the independence of Turkmenistan in December 1991 and to establish formal diplomatic relations with it in April 1992. The brief describes the two countries, as modern nations, as enjoying long-standing bonds of friendship and cooperation.

Contacts predate independence: India's first Prime Minister, Shri Jawaharlal Nehru, visited Ashgabat in 1955 as part of his tour of the Soviet Union. The older civilisational links described in the brief are covered in the culture article of this guide.

Dialogue mechanisms

The two countries have set up two regular dialogue mechanisms:

  • the Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) for Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation, at the level of Foreign Ministers
  • the Foreign Office Consultations (FOC), at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers

External Affairs Minister Smt. Sushma Swaraj visited Ashgabat from 7-9 April 2015 to co-chair the 5th meeting of the IGC with her Turkmen counterpart, Mr. Rashid Meredov, and called on the then President, H.E. Mr. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. The 6th meeting of the IGC took place in New Delhi in August 2017.

The 5th round of FOC was held in Ashgabat on 21 January 2026, co-chaired by Secretary (West), MEA and the Deputy Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan. Secretary (West), Shri Sibi George, also paid a courtesy call on Foreign Minister Mr. Rashid Meredov.

Visits by heads of state and government

The first President of Turkmenistan, H.E. Mr. Saparmurat Niyazov, paid official visits to New Delhi in 1992 and 1997. The then Prime Minister of India, Shri PV Narasimha Rao, visited Ashgabat in September 1995. The then President, H.E. Mr. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, visited New Delhi in May 2010.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi paid an official visit to Ashgabat in July 2015, as part of his Central Asia tour. During the visit he inaugurated the "Yoga and Traditional Medicine Centre" in Ashgabat and unveiled a bust of Mahatma Gandhi. Bilateral MoUs were signed in several fields, as listed in the development article.

The then President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, visited Ashgabat in April 2022, the first Indian Head of State to do so. MoUs signed during that visit are listed in the development article.

Vice-presidential visits

The then Vice President of India, Shri Mohammed Hamid Ansari, paid an official visit to Turkmenistan (Ashgabat and Mary) in 2008. He visited again on 12 December 2015 to take part in the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the "Permanent Neutrality" of Turkmenistan, and attended the ground-breaking of the TAPI gas pipeline project, described in the trade article. The annexure to the brief also lists transit visits by Vice Presidents Shri Krishan Kant in August 1999 and Shri BS Shekawat in October 2005.

Foreign ministers and other ministerial visits

Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov has visited India several times. The brief lists visits to India in January 2008, January 2013, December 2016 (Amritsar), February 2020 (transit) and December 2021 (3rd India-Central Asia Dialogue).

He took part in the 4th India-Central Asia Dialogue, chaired by External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar in New Delhi on 5-6 June 2025. On the sidelines he held a bilateral meeting with the EAM and, with the Foreign Ministers of other Central Asian countries, paid a joint courtesy call on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. He had earlier met the EAM in New York in September 2024, on the sidelines of the 79th UN General Assembly.

Earlier Turkmen foreign ministerial visits listed in the brief were those of Mr. Boris Shikhmuradov in April 1995, February 1997 (accompanying the President) and April 2000.

On the Indian side, External Affairs Ministers Shri Jaswant Singh (May 1999) and Shri S.M. Krishna (September 2009) visited Ashgabat. Smt. Sushma Swaraj, besides the IGC visit, made transit visits in October 2015, August 2018 and September 2018, and held bilateral meetings with Mr. Rashid Meredov. Ministers of State for External Affairs Shri E. Ahamed (October 2006 and February 2007), Smt. Preneet Kaur (February 2010) and Shri M.J. Akbar (February 2018) also visited.

Visits by Indian sectoral ministers are listed in the development and trade articles.

Cooperation at the United Nations

According to the brief, India and Turkmenistan cooperate closely within the United Nations. Turkmenistan supports India's permanent membership in a reformed and expanded UN Security Council, while India supports Turkmenistan's policy of "Permanent Neutrality". Turkmenistan has also supported India's candidature in elections to various UN bodies.

In September 2024, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution, jointly initiated by India and Turkmenistan, on the annual holding of the "UN Friendship Games".

The India-Central Asia framework

The two countries also interact within the India-Central Asia Dialogue. The then President, H.E. Mr. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, took part in the 1st India-Central Asia Summit, held in virtual format under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. Turkmen participation in the framework's business, connectivity, security, cultural and youth meetings is described in the other articles of this guide.