Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan's leader Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has sacked several senior government officials, citing pervasive corruption and slow reforms in key sectors of the economy, state television reported on July 10.

The speaker of ex-Soviet Turkmenistan's pliant parliament has proposed constitutional changes extending the presidential term limit and removing the maximum age for the presidency, state media reported May 29.

A grandiose statue of the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow was erected in the center of the capital Ashgabat, as reported by the AFP.

The isolated Central Asian state of Turkmenistan on May 25 unveiled a large gold statue of President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov riding a horse, in a move echoing his predecessor's cult of personality.  

EU energy boss Maros Sefcovic said late on April 30 that Europe could import natural gas from ex-Soviet Turkmenistan via Iran as Brussels ramps up efforts to break its dependence on Russian-sourced energy.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an has used the Savarona, the official yacht of the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, for the first time ever to host a foreign leader.

An article published on the website of Turkmenistan's oil and gas ministry Monday attacked Russia's energy giant Gazprom, calling the company an unreliable partner for the reclusive Central Asian state.        

Locals call it the Door to Hell, a giant burning pit that has spit out angry flames for more than 40 years, casting a yellow-orange glow into the evening sky.
      
"It takes your breath away," said Gozel Yazkulieva, a 34-year-old visitor from the Turkmenistan capital Ashgabat. "You immediately think of your sins and feel like praying."