Ashgabat [Turkmenistan], January 22 (ANI): Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Sibi George, on Wednesday reaffirmed India's commitment to enhancing trade, economic, investment, and transport linkages with Turkmenistan and other Central Asian countries during the United Nations Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) Economic Forum.

According to a post by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on X, the Secretary (West), who represented India at the forum, highlighted India's focus on expanding economic cooperation with the region, underlining the importance of stronger connectivity and collaborative initiatives to boost mutual growth.

On the sidelines of the SPECA Economic Forum, Secretary George also held interactions with key regional officials, including the Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan, as well as Deputy Ministers from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, to discuss ways to further bilateral and multilateral engagements.

'Secretary (West) Sibi George represented India at the SPECA (UN Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia) Economic Forum. In his speech, Secretary (West) reiterated India's commitment to further enhance trade, economic, investment & transport linkages with Turkmenistan & other Central Asian countries. On the sidelines of SPECA Forum, Secretary (West) interacted with Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan and Deputy Ministers of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan,' the MEA post read.

The United Nations Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) was launched in 1998 to strengthen subregional cooperation in Central Asia and facilitate its integration into the global economy.

The SPECA member countries are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) jointly provide overall support to the programme.

Last year, the 4th meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue was held in New Delhi under the chairship of the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

Ministers of Foreign Affairs from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan participated in the meeting. (ANI)