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C O N F I D E N T I A L ASHGABAT 001252 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2019 
TAGS: PGOV PREL TX UN
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: FOR BERDIMUHAMEDOV, PRAISE FROM ANY 
SOURCE IS WELCOME 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Sylvia Reed Curran.  Reasons 1.4 (B) a 
nd (D). 
 
 ¶1. (U) On September 26, on the front page of state-run 
newspaper "Neytralniy Turkmenistan," there was a photo of the 
certificate and medal that were presented to President 
Berdimuhamedov on September 24 when he was in the United 
States for the UN General Assembly.  The certificate was for 
"faithful promotion of information community" and was given 
to him by the International Informatization Academy, a 
consultant organization to the Economic and Social Council of 
the UN.  The article about the award was next to an article 
of the same size about Berdimuhamedov's meeting with Javier 
Solana, the EU High Representative for Common Foreign and 
Security Policy.  Another photo of the certificate and medal 
appeared in the September 28 issue of Neytralniy Turkmenistan 
as part of a photo montage of Berdimuhamedov's meetings on 
the margins of the UNGA, alongside photos of him with the 
Secretary, the UN Secretary General, the Turkish Prime 
Minister, and the Polish President. 
 
¶2. (U) The article accompanying the photo of the award bore 
the title "A High International Award is Bestowed Upon 
Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov," but most of the text described 
Berdimuhamedov's participation at the UN General Assembly. 
Only the last two paragraphs were dedicated to the 
presentation of the award, with most of the space taken up by 
details of where the award presentation took place and who 
was present.  However, the very end of the article clarified 
the Turkmen message, which is that they see the award as a 
sign of support for their "progressive" politics and 
recognition of Berdimuhamedov's model for peace and 
development. 
 
¶3. (C) COMMENT: The large picture of the award in the 
national newspaper was just another example of the Turkmen 
government's focus on form over substance, as well as its 
penchant to portray itself as a major international actor. 
The declaration by Trenton, New Jersey of "Gurbanguly 
Berdimuhamedov Day" also received disproportionate attention 
in the Turkmen state media (two days worth of press!).  The 
national newspapers in Turkmenistan write about every meeting 
the president has and every award he receives with the same 
exalted level of pomp and circumstance and the same main 
message: that Turkmenistan is being recognized as an 
important country on the world stage. 
 
¶4. (C)  COMMENT CONTINUED:  As another example, a September 
25 "Neytralniy Turkmenistan" story on the FLEX student 
exchange program featured interviews from five different 
young people regarding their experiences at high schools in 
the United States.  In addition to detailing their activities 
and life with their host families, it discussed the intense 
interest the other students, teachers and acquaintances had 
in Turkmenistan.  Every FLEX student interviewed gave 
multiple presentations on Turkmenistan and answered numerous 
questions about their country.  Their classmates were 
impressed by what they learned and dreamed about visiting. 
One FLEX student said, "the interest of the kids and teachers 
about our country, and in those changes which are occurring 
here in the epoch of the new revival was huge."  Certainly, 
the American classmates were curious about Turkmenistan. 
However, given the attention span and typical interests of 
the average American teenager, these stories clearly must be 
exaggerations.  Nevertheless, they serve to underscore and 
add to the narrative that Turkmenistan is important. 
 
¶5. (C) COMMENT CONTINUED: The mere announcement of an award 
or occurrence of a meeting is just as important to the 
Turkmen government as what the award represents or what the 
meeting accomplished.  Businesses and international 
organizations that recognize this and cater to the Turkmen 
government's penchant for praise and its focus on visuals are 
better received than those that focus exclusively on 
substance.  In the case of Berdimuhamedov, flattery is not 
 
only welcome, but expected.  END COMMENT. 
CURRAN