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President Niyazov's palace in Ashgabat (Photo: Wikipedia)

MEPs face Turkmenistan gas and human rights dilemma

Initial reports from an MEPs' visit to Turkmenistan paint a grim picture of the Central Asian country, amid concerns that the EU's interest in the country's energy reservoirs undermines its stand on human rights.

"It's the most repressive country I've ever been to," British conservative MEP Martin Callanan told EUobserver on Monday night (26 June) after a five-day long trip last week. "Human rights standards don't exist."

The MEP visit comes a few months after the European Commis...

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Author Bio

Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's Foreign Affairs Editor. He has been writing about foreign and security affairs for EUobserver since 2005. He is Polish but grew up in the UK. He has also written for The Guardian, The Telegraph, and The Times of London.

President Niyazov's palace in Ashgabat (Photo: Wikipedia)

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Author Bio

Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's Foreign Affairs Editor. He has been writing about foreign and security affairs for EUobserver since 2005. He is Polish but grew up in the UK. He has also written for The Guardian, The Telegraph, and The Times of London.

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