WT/ACC/26  
WT/GC/179  
 
19 May 2016  
(16-2729)  Page: 1/8  
  Original: English  
 
 TRADE POLICY FORUM ON CENTRAL ASIA AND THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM 
 
STRUCTURAL REFORMS, DIVERSIFICATION, TRADE FACILITATION AND INTEGRATION, 
11-13 MAY 2016 
THE ASHGABAT STATEMENT 
 
The following communication, dated 18 May 2016, addressed to the Director-General of the 
World Trade Organization and copied to the Chairman  of the General Council, is being circulated at 
the request of the Delegations of Kazakh stan, Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan.  
 
_______________ WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  Communication from the Delegations of Kaza khstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan, 
addressed to Mr. Roberto Azevêdo, WTO Director-General, on 18 May 2016 
 
The Delegations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, on behalf of Participants at the 
Trade Policy Forum for Central Asia and the Multilateral Trading System , which was held in 
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, from 11 to 13 May 2016, would like to submit for your kind attention the "Ashgabat Statement"  adopted by all Participants at the Forum.  On behalf of the Participants, we 
have the honour to request that the (attached) Ashgabat Statement  be circulated as a document 
of the WTO General Council and WTO Accessions.   
 As you already know, this Trade Policy Forum was the first of its kind to be organized for the 
region of Central Asia.  Participants were pleased that the Policy Forum was hosted by 
Turkmenistan, as it continues to study the implications of WTO membership, build its capacity for trade policy and, deepen its understanding about the benefits of the rules-based Multilateral 
Trading System.  The Trade Policy Forum welcomed the thematic focus on the key and timely 
subjects of WTO Accession and associated structur al reforms for diversification and modernization; 
and, the theme of trade facilitation, regional coop eration and integration in the rules-based global 
economy.   
 The substantive exchange of views at the Foru m was mutually beneficial, illuminating and 
clarifying a range of questions.  Participants fr om the region, already WTO Members, shared their 
experience of WTO accession, which had been positive in process and substance.  
Most importantly, this Trade Policy Forum, inter alia , fostered capacity-building that was relevant 
to the region and based on real regional experience .  To ensure that this useful exercise is not 
ad hoc , and is sustained as a process of mutually enriching dialogue amongst the network of Chief 
Trade Negotiators in the region, the Trade Policy Forum welcomed and accepted the offer by the Government of Kazakhstan to host the next forum in Kazakhstan in 2017.   
 
We commend you Director-General and Mr. Christian Friis Bach, Executive Secretary of the 
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) for organizing this Trade Policy Forum.  We consider it concrete support for your position underscoring the strategic importance of Central 
Asia.  We commend you, Director-General, for your leadership of the World Trade Organization.  
Participants at the Forum look forward to working in a process of close and constructive partnership with the WTO and the UNECE on the su bjects of WTO Accessions, Trade Facilitation 
and Trade Integration in a stable, rules-based Multilateral Trade System.  
  
_______________ 
  
 WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  TRADE POLICY FORUM ON CENTRAL ASIA AND THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM 
ASHGABAT STATEMENT: STRUCTURAL REFORMS, DIVERSIFICATION, TRADE FACILITATION AND 
INTEGRATION  
"Mitigating the Barriers to Trade and Investment" 
13 May 2016 
INTRODUCTION 
1. The Trade Policy Forum on Central Asia and th e Multilateral Trading System took place in 
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan ( hereafter : The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum) from 11 to 13 May 2016.  
The Trade Policy Forum was organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).  It was hosted by the Government of Turkmenistan.    
 
2. The Trade Policy Forum was opened jointly by Mr. Shamurat Mustafayev, Deputy Minister of 
Economy and Development of Turkmenistan; Mr. An drey Vasilyev, Deputy Executive Secretary of 
UNECE; and, Mr. Chiedu Osakwe, WTO Director of Accessions.   
 3. The opening statements highlighted the strategi c importance of Central Asia, in particular 
the contributions which the region could make to global trade integration by enhancing regional 
integration and improving trade facilitation and connecting the dynamic emerging markets in Asia to traditional markets.  There was strong appreciation for the contributions made by Turkmenistan, as host of this Trade Policy Forum, in promoting regional connectivity through transport and transit 
corridors.  The statements welcomed the greater en gagement of the WTO in Central Asia, building 
on the Third China Round Table in Dushanbe held in June 2015.  It was highlighted that the region was a priority for the WTO, and for WTO Dire ctor General Roberto Azevêdo, following the 
conclusion of the Accession of Kazakhstan in 2015 – one of the most complex accessions that the 
system had dealt with since GATT 1947 and whose results had significantly enriched the rules-
based trading system.  This Forum was critically important for the WTO to improve understanding 
of the region and to design a real, beneficial an d enriching partnership with the region.  In this 
regard, the cooperation between the WTO and the UNECE, including through the United Nations 
Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA)
1, was welcomed in providing 
support for accession and post-accession reforms, as well as for the implementation of the WTO 
Trade Facilitation Agreement, which is expected to come into force during the course of 2016.  
 4.   The Trade Policy Forum was the first of this kind held in Central Asia.  Its objective was to 
promote the integration of Central Asia into the rules-based Multilateral Trading System (MTS), 
and having regard to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.  The Forum focused on the dual themes at the top of the trade policy agenda of  the Central Asian region: i) WTO Accession and 
associated domestic reforms, global trade inte gration and growth effects; and ii) regional 
integration, including the implementation of the WT O Trade Facilitation Agreement.  At the specific 
request of Turkmenistan the Forum served as  a platform for sharing experiences on WTO 
accessions from the region.  It established a relevant context for Turkmenistan to engage in a 
process of dialogue with its neighbours, taking ac count of a range of experiences and the different 
stages of the accession process, including those who are already WTO members.   
 
5. The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum was also organized in response to the decisions taken by 
the 9
th session of the SPECA Working Group on Tr ade in July 2015 and the SPECA Governing 
Council in November 2015.  These SPECA meetings identified four major objectives: (i) integration 
of the region into the rules-based Multilateral Trading System under the WTO (UN SDG 17.10); (ii) 
promotion of trade facilitation in the region; (iii) support for regional trade cooperation; and, (iv) substantive contribution of the SPECA Thematic Working Group on Trade for the achievement of 
the SDGs goals related to trade.  
 
                                               
1 The SPECA includes Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazak hstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and 
Uzbekistan. WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  6.   Participants at the Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum were the (Chief) Trade Negotiators of the 
Central Asian countries that were already WTO me mbers, having successfully negotiated the terms 
and conditions of their membership: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan; and, Azerbaijan at an advanced stage of its accession negotiations.
2  Trade negotiators from the Islamic Republic of Iran 
participated.  The World Bank, GIZ and UNDP were represented and actively participated.   
 SESSION I: ACCESSION TO THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (WTO)  
7. Session I of the Ashgabat Trade Policy Foru m focused on Accession to the WTO and was 
chaired by Mr. Chiedu Osakwe, Director, WTO Accessions Division.  The session started with two opening keynote presentations on "Accession to  the Rules-based Multilateral Trading System: 
Opportunities and Challenges for Central Asia" by  the WTO (Mr. Chiedu Osakwe) and Turkmenistan 
(Mr. Shamurat Mustafayev, Deputy Minister  of Economy and Development). Thereafter, 
presentations were made focused on sharing national negotiating experiences across the following themes: (i) Kazakhstan – How to drive and conclude an accession – Perspectives of a former 
negotiator" (Ms. Aliya Alimbetova, Deputy Director, Foreign Trade Activity Development 
Department, Ministry of National Economy, and Negotiator for Kazakhstan); (ii) Azerbaijan - Domestic preparations and coordination – Perspectives of a Chief Negotiator (Mr. Mahmud 
Mammad-Guliyev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affair s, and Chief Negotiator for the Accession of 
Azerbaijan); and (iii) Iran - Preparing for Accession Negotiations (Mr. Saman Yousefvand, WTO Desk Officer, Multilateral Economic Cooperation Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Islamic Republic of Iran).  
 
8. Further presentations that combined negotiat ing experience with actual experience of 
m e m b e r s h i p  w e r e  m a d e  b y  T a j i k i s t a n  ( M r .  S a i d r a h m o n  N a z r i z o d a ,  F i r s t  D e p u t y  M i n i s t e r  o f  
Economic Development and Trade, and former Chief Negotiator for Tajikistan) and the Kyrgyz 
Republic (Ms. Anarkan Rakhmanova, Deputy Minister and Head of the Representative Office of Kyrgyzstan to the WTO, and former Chief Negotiator).  On partnerships, outreach, support and 
available resources for Acceding Governments, still in the process of accession, presentations were 
made by the WTO (Ms. Maika Oshikawa, Counsel lor, Accessions Division) and the World Bank 
(Mr. Wolfgang Fengler, Lead Economist in the Trade and Competitiveness Division).  Ms. Cecilia Klein, former US Trade Negotiator for the WTO Accessions was discussant for Session I. 
 
9.  Session I covered a wide range of perspectives and reviewed themes that revolved around 
several questions.  Why do countries seek WTO accession?  How can the complexity of the process 
be best managed?  How should negotiating team s be organized?  What strategies should be 
adopted for technical assistance and capacity building?  Is there an optimal negotiating strategy?  How should negotiating redlines be defined?  Wh at are the best practices?  How should market 
access offers be prepared?  What has been the actual experience of membership for Article XII 
Members?  What have been the effects of th e process of accessions and the conditions of 
membership on trade and economic performanc e of Article XII Members and their domestic 
priority-setting for transformation, diversification, modernization and trade integration?   
 
10. The presentations and exchanges made eviden t that accession experiences are unique.  
No two were alike.  After twenty years of WTO accession experience and 36 completed accessions, 
it was self-evident that there was a range of rich but varying negotiating experiences.  
The exchanges encompassed this spectrum of ac cession experiences.  While there were long-
standing best practices and lessons learned, which could serve as a guide, in reality there were no 
precedents or formulae to apply.  "Practice did not create precedent".   
 
11. Amongst the five Central Asian countries, three had successfully completed their accession 
negotiations and had gained WTO membership (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan).  
Azerbaijan was at an advanced stage of its membership negotiations.  After the establishment of 
its Inter-Governmental Commission on the WTO in 2013, Turkmenistan was still in the process of learning, analysing and deepening its understanding on the WTO.  The Islamic Republic of Iran 
was actively engaged in preparatory work for the re-start of its Accession Working Party.   
 
12. In the exchange of views, the Central Asian Chief Negotiator counterparts provided policy 
advice to Turkmen Senior Officials, pledged their support for the WTO Accession of Turkmenistan, 
                                               
2 Uzbekistan did not part icipate at the Ashgabat  Trade Policy Forum.  WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  in case Ashgabat decided to apply for accession and pledged to sustain the valuable exchange of 
experiences.   
 
13. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan considered that the process of accession, while 
complex and long, had been decidedly worthwhile and positive.  Solutions had always been found 
for negotiating challenges that ab initio  appeared intractable.  There were significant benefits from 
the accession process and from actual membership.  The process had been critical for many 
countries in managing the transition from the centrally planned economy under the Soviet system 
to the opportunities and rewards of the market ec onomy, based on the rule of law, openness and 
trade integration.  WTO accession had contribute d to the improvement of competitiveness, the 
discovery and expansion of market access opportun ities, the alignment of domestic standards to 
international ones and, to the improvement of the environment for business.  The experience 
shared by the completed Central Asian accessions and those in progress indicated that the accession process had been used for hard diagnostics of corrections to be made in the domestic 
economy and to trigger reforms, which in several instances, had led to an improvement in the 
international rankings  in the ease of doing business.  It was noted that the trade and economic performance of Article XII Members had been more  robust and resilient.  The Trade Policy Forum 
welcomed the fact that it was accession negotiations that had led to the gathering of trade 
negotiators in the region to review their priorities, and concert their efforts in a network geared to reducing barriers to trade and investments amongst their economies.  The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum agreed that the results from accessions had generated significant inputs to the global 
economic "growth machine".    
 
14. The Trade Policy Forum reviewed different appr oaches to organizing negotiating structures 
and preparing for negotiations.  Several best practices had emerged from the case of successful 
accessions.  These included , inter alia , (i) designation of a Chief Negotiator; (ii) establishment of 
an agile and versatile negotiating team; (iii) establishment of a domestic coordination mechanism 
that connected technical experts, negotiators, policy-makers and business; (iv) preparation of an 
Accession Roadmap to navigate the accession proc ess; (iv) preparation of an Accession-Specific 
Technical Assistance and Capacity-Building Plan; and, (v) substantive focus on rules, market access expansion and fostering new relationships in the negotiations.   
 
15. Building expert capacity across the principal ar eas of trade was critical to operating in the 
global economy.  The Trade Policy Forum noted th e experience of those that had completed their 
negotiations demonstrated that capacity was best built through engagement in the process.  
Adequate levels of capacity and knowledge could not be acquired prior to engagement in the process because the multilateral trade regime was in dynamic motion.  It was noted that resources 
were readily available from the WTO for its members and observers and from other multilateral 
institutions such as the UNECE, the World Bank, the IMF, UNCTAD, the ITC, and regional institutions.  The Trade Policy Forum took note of the extensive list and resources that remained available to support trade and competitiveness, including economies in the process of WTO 
accession.   
 16. The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum engaged in an exchange of views on prevalent concerns 
associated with the results of accessions, fo r example, that "domestic industry" could be 
overwhelmed, subsistence operators could be eliminated and questions related to reduction of policy space and flexibility for governments.  Foru m participants noted the account of experiences 
shared by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan which showed that this was not the case.  
In fact, to the contrary, the instruments in their terms and conditions of accession had provided ample space required in domestic economic policy.  These included, bound versus applied levels of tariffs; de minimis  levels in agriculture domestic support, as well as Green Box programmes and 
AMS that were subject to phased reduction commitments.  In other areas, compromise and 
pragmatic solutions had been found for the redlines  and real difficulties of Acceding Governments 
through waivers, transition periods, flexibility provisions, etc.   
 
17. Participants took note of the position of Turkmenistan that it was still at the stage of 
analysis, learning and improving its understanding of the mission and mandate of the WTO, the 
substance of the work of the Organization, an d effects on domestic economic order and, 
contribution to global economic welfare and prosperity.  Participants offered their support to Turkmenistan and encouraged the country to engage  with the WTO.  While participants welcomed 
the progress made by Turkmenistan with rega rd to regulatory developments, enactment of 
legislation, the high quality of its infrastructure and its commitment to trade facilitation and WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  integration, they also noted that WTO accession was a necessary next step.  The Trade Policy 
Forum underscored the position that WTO membership would open up further opportunities for improvement and strengthening competitiveness.  Engagement in the process contributed to 
expanding international economic activity and facilitated trade.  The Trade Policy Forum 
encouraged Turkmenistan to initiate the process with application for Observer Status.  
Central Asian negotiators pledged their support for Turkmenistan in the process, as a region and at the WTO in Geneva, if Turkmenistan decided to proceed with the process of WTO accession.   
 
18. The Trade Policy Forum noted that the twenty-y ear history of 36 WTO accessions had made 
evident that Acceding Governments had used WT O Accessions as an instrument for domestic 
reforms, structural transformation, diversification and modernization of their economies.  
These governments had used the platform of WTO accession negotiations to expand market access 
opportunities, increase their stock of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), participate in setting the rules of global trade and in so doing, manage the totality of their international economic 
relationships: bilateral, regional and global.  At the same time, it was noted that benefits of the 
WTO was commensurate with the degree of engagement.  The deeper the engagement in the rules-based global economy and the WTO, the greater the benefits.   
 
19. To conclude Session I on the Accession to the WTO, Chief Trade Negotiators confirmed that:    
 
a. their experience of WTO accession had been worthwhile and that the emerging effects 
of their WTO membership were positive with regard to their objectives for trade 
facilitation; convergence – "catching up" – and domestic reforms for structural transformation to achieve greater diversification of their economies;   
 
b. the WTO accession process was instrumental to their domestic reforms to modernize 
their economies, upgrade their regulato ry architecture, improve their business 
environment, find new markets, and acquire the "rights" of WTO membership, 
particularly the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) and trade defence instruments that would safeguard their economies from the risk of unfair trade practices; and,  
 
c. the process of accession had enabled a significant expansion in their capacity and 
expertise for operating in a knowledge-based economy.   
 
20. Chief Negotiators from Central Asia and its neighbours reaffirmed their support for one other 
in the WTO accession negotiations, pledged their support for Turkmenistan and, agreed to move 
forward on the basis of a "Network of Central Asian Negotiators", to promote common objectives 
and priorities and to provide mutual support, regionally and at the WTO.    SESSION II: TRADE FACILITATION IN CENTRAL ASIA 
21. Session II was moderated by Ms. Virginia Cram-Martos, Director, Economic Development 
and Trade Division of the UNECE, who kicked off the session with a presentation on the needs for 
Central Asia in trade facilitation.  Presentations were also made on the WTO Trade Facilitation 
Agreement (Mr. Mario Apostolov, Regional Advise r, Trade Division, UNECE) and on the readiness 
for implementation of the TFA by Kazakhstan under a UNECE-UNCTAD project (Mr. Alexander 
Strokatov, Deputy Director, WTO Department, Centre for Trade Policy, Development Ministry of 
National Economy). 
 
22. Forum participants welcomed the progress made on the ratification of the TFA by WTO 
members, and called on the Central Asian WTO members to expedite the ratification processes 
and/or the deposit the Instrument of Acceptance with the WTO Director-General, so that the TFA 
would come into force during the course of 2016.   The Trade Policy Forum was informed that the 
acceptance of the TFA would form part of th e commitments that acceding governments would 
undertake, along with the acceptance of the TR IPS amendment.  The representatives of WTO 
Members from Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan) exchanged information 
on the state of the category A notifications and their implementation plans of TFA measures.  
Azerbaijan, acceding government, noted that it had adopted many of the TFA measures which 
were part of the international norms, such as the WCO Revised Kyoto Convention, the SAFE standards.  A question was raised with respect to Kazakhstan's notifications on the categories B and C that might contradict its accession commitments, although Kazakhstan assured the Forum WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  that it would respect its accession commitments, and explained that that it had taken a 
conservative approach as the TFA measures were non-binding. 
 
23. The Trade Policy Forum welcomed the progress made on the reduction of trade costs in 
some countries in the region, although they ackn owledged that more could be done.  Some felt 
that the World Bank Trading across Borders rating in the Doing Business reports did not accurately reflect developments on the ground or the methodologies used for the rating did not fully reflect 
the problems of landlocked countries.  It was stressed that cooperation among the Central Asian 
economies was critical in the reduction of trade costs in the region, which remained one of the highest in the world. 
 
24. Forum participants took note of the national and regional projects implemented by the World 
Bank and the GIZ in support of trade facilitation (presentations were made by Mrs. Violane Konar-Leacy, IFC; and Mr. David Oberhuber, Programme Director, GIZ programme "Support to Regional 
Trade in Central Asia").  These projects currently  focused on the implementation of specific TF 
measures, such as coordinated border management  and Authorized Economic Operators, as well 
as the implementation of Single Window systems, although future projects would focus more on 
institutions, cross-border data exchange, risk management, regional cooperation in trade and 
transport, advance information, etc.  The critic al importance of cooperation among donors was 
stressed for the region to maximize the benefits from these projects.   
 
25. The session recognised that greater benefits could be derived from the intersection between 
national and regional priorities and activities in the area of trade facilitation.  In this regard, the Trade Policy Forum generally welcomed the proposal for the endorsement and further development 
of a regional trade facilitation strategy, which was made by Mr. Saidrahmon Nazrizoda, First 
Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Tr ade of Tajikistan and Chairman of the SPECA 
Working Group on Trade, and was supported by a draft text prepared in collaboration with the 
UNECE.  At the same time, the Forum was reminded that possible duplication should be avoided 
with other on-going work in the region.  The importance of involving the business community in developing such a strategy was also stressed. 
 
SESSION III: HIGH LEVEL SEGMENT ON REGIONAL TRADE COOPERATION AND 
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 
26. Session III was moderated by Mr. Saidrahmon Nazrizoda, First Deputy Minister of Economic 
Development and Trade of Tajikistan.  The session started with two lead presentations by 
Tajikistan (H.E. Mr. Saidrahmon Nazrizoda) focusing on "Priorities and Challenges for Regional Trade Development and Facilitation: A Strategic Approach" and by Turkmenistan (Mr. Shamurat 
Mustafayev, Deputy Minister of Economy and Deve lopment) focusing on "Benefits from Regional 
Trade".  Tajikistan stressed the importance of developing a strategic approach to trade development in the framework of the region, in cluding the development of a regional trade 
facilitation strategy, so that the potential of the countries to develop in a clearly defined direction 
was outlined, and the countries, the business community and the international development 
partners knew where to place their efforts and resources.  Many participants supported this 
approach.  The presentations were followed by co mments from the representatives of the Central 
Asian economies in a round table format.     
 
27. Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan noted that trade policy cooperation would foster 
overall regional cooperation in the SPECA region.  Azerbaijan stressed the importance of work on 
improving the connectivity among the countries and attracting development partners. Kazakhstan noted that the Strategy 2050, proposed by th e President of Kazakhstan, supported regional 
cooperation, without which there could be no prosperity for the individual countries in the region.  
 
28. The UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (Mr. Armands Pupols) 
noted the importance of regional cooperation in trade for stability in the region and the integration 
of Afghanistan into the regional and global economy. UNECE, GIZ, and Tajikistan stressed the 
importance of working in support of regional  supply chains for development in the region. 
29. The Trade Policy Forum welcomed the representa tives' proposals for strengthening regional 
trade cooperation mechanisms and, notably, the consolidation of a consultation and cooperation 
mechanism among Trade Negotiators, initiated at the current Forum.  Forum participants reiterated the importance of preparing regional studies on: non-tariff barriers to trade; including WT/ACC/26 • WT/GC/179 
 
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  the integration of economies of the region into  global value chains; and the development of 
regional, cross-border supply chains. The Trade Policy Forum further urged international development partners to support such studies and work on the implementation of resulting 
recommendations. 
 
CONCLUSIONS 
30. The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum welcomed this first regional forum focused on the 
integration of Central Asia into the rules-based MTS.  Over the 3-day presentations and exchange 
of views, Forum participants considered that this initial engagement of Trade Negotiators from Central Asia and its neighbours was necessary, had been constructive and positive with regard to regional priorities.  A range of intersecting priorities included, inter alia,  "mitigating barriers to 
trade and investment", trade facilitation and integration, improving competitiveness and 
expanding the capacity to enable beneficial particip ation in the global economy.  They considered it 
useful to work together, as appropriate and wh en necessary, as a "Network for Central Asian 
Negotiators", to promote common objectives and prio rities and to provide mutual support.  It was 
felt that it would be useful to sustain the gathering of the "Network for Central Asian Negotiators", annually.  To this end, the offer by Kazakhstan was accepted to host the next Forum of Central 
Asian Trade Negotiators in 2017, focused on WTO Accession (as an instrument for domestic 
reforms), strengthening the rules-based Multilateral Trading System, trade facilitation and regional and global trade integration.  
31. The Trade Policy Forum gave full support to Turkmenistan, at its current stage of improving 
its understanding of the WTO, building expert capaci ty, before it made a decision about the nature 
of its relationship with the WTO.  Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, already WTO Members, 
and Azerbaijan, still in the process of accession, shared their accession experiences and provided 
useful policy advice.  They encouraged Turkmenist an to move towards the goal of a relationship 
with the WTO. They pledged to support Turkmenist an, regionally, and in the WTO, if Turkmenistan 
decided to seek accession.   
 32. The Trade Policy Forum stated its support fo r the re-activation of the Working Party on 
Accession of the Islamic Republic of Iran and urged the WTO General Council to designate a 
Chairperson of the Working Party on the basis of consensus. 
 33. The Trade Policy Forum achieved the broad understanding in support of the following 
objectives: (i) the need for a regional coordination and cooperation mechanism for the trade 
negotiators; (ii) the integration of Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan into the global rules-based trading system under the WTO; (iii) the develo pment of a regional SPECA Trade Facilitation 
Strategy; (iv) the identification of actions and studies to be undertaken by the SPECA Thematic 
Working Group on Trade in support of the trad e-related SDG goals; and (v) the promotion of 
regional cooperation to support trade in Central Asia. 
 
34. The Ashgabat Trade Policy Forum commended th e collaboration between the UNECE and the 
WTO Secretariat for this first event, jointly organised by the two institutions in Central Asia and encouraged them to further develop their partnership in supporting regional integration in Central 
Asia within the multilateral trade framework. 
 
35. The Forum expressed its appreciation to the Government and People of Turkmenistan for 
hosting the Trade Policy Forum and for the excellent arrangements and warm hospitality provided 
to the participants.    36. The Forum welcomed and accepted the offer from Kazakhstan to host the next Trade Policy 
Forum for Central Asia in Kazakhstan in 2017.   
 37. The Forum requested that this "Ashgabat Declaration" be circulated as a document of the 
General Council of the WTO and the SPECA Thematic Working Group on Trade. 
 
__________