Turkmenistan, formerly also known as Turkmenia, is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic(Turkmen SSR). Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states. It is bordered by Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest, Uzbekistan to the east and northeast, Kazakhstan to the north and northwest and the Caspian Sea to the west.
The country possesses the world’s fourth-largest reserves of natural gas and substantial oil resources. Half of the country’s irrigated land is planted with cotton, making the country the world’s ninth-largest cotton producer.
Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its economy.
Half of the country’s irrigated land is planted with cotton, making the country the world’s ninth-largest cotton producer.