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91-601: The population is sparse, with an average of one person per 6.5 km (2.5 sq mi). Rainfall is also rare, ranging from 70 to 150 mm (3 to 6 in) per year. The desert covers roughly seventy percent of Turkmenistan , a long east–west swath. It sits east of the Caspian Sea which has a steep east bank. It adjoins, to the north, the long delta feeding the South Aral Sea further north, another endorheic lake , about 58 m (190 ft) higher than

182-592: A non-democratic election (he had been vice-president and then acting president previously); and his son Serdar , who won a subsequent 2022 presidential election described by international observers as neither free nor fair , and now shares power with his father. Turkmenistan possesses the world's fifth largest reserves of natural gas . Most of the country is covered by the Karakum Desert . From 1993 to 2019, citizens received government-provided electricity, water and natural gas free of charge. Turkmenistan

273-659: A political dynasty in Turkmenistan. On 19 March 2022, Serdar Berdimuhamedov was sworn in as Turkmenistan's new president to succeed his father. After over a century of being a part of the Russian Empire and then the Soviet Union (including 67 years as a union republic), Turkmenistan declared its independence on 27 October 1991, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union . Saparmurat Niyazov ,

364-475: A "central pool of open water surrounded by a ring of water-dependent shrubs and trees…which are in turn encircled by an outlying transition zone to desert plants." Rain showers provide subterranean water to sustain natural oases, such as the Tuat . Substrata of impermeable rock and stone can trap water and retain it in pockets, or on long faulting subsurface ridges or volcanic dikes water can collect and percolate to

455-553: A "cheaper and faster" option. One married couple in the eastern Farap district said that they had to provide documents and letters from 40 different agencies to support their adoption application, yet three years later there was still no decision on their bid. Meanwhile, wealthier applicants in Farap received a child for legal adoption within four months after applying because they paid up to 50,000 manats (about $ 14,300) in bribes. At 488,100 km (188,500 sq mi), Turkmenistan

546-563: A court decision. Homosexual acts are illegal in Turkmenistan. The use of the death penalty in the country was suspended in 1999, before being formally abolished in 2008. Despite the launch of Turkmenistan's first communication satellite , the TurkmenSat 1 , in April 2015, the Turkmen government banned all satellite dishes in Turkmenistan the same month. The statement issued by

637-601: A former official of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , ruled Turkmenistan from 1985, when he became head of the Communist Party of the Turkmen SSR , until his death in 2006. He retained absolute control over the country as President after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. On 28 December 1999, Niyazov was declared President for Life of Turkmenistan by the Mejlis (parliament), which itself had taken office

728-419: A natural condition, such as the presence of water that may be stored in reservoirs and used for irrigation, most oases, as we know them, are artificial. The word oasis came into English from Latin : oasis , from Ancient Greek : ὄασις , óasis , which in turn is a direct borrowing from Demotic Egyptian . The word for oasis in the latter-attested Coptic language (the descendant of Demotic Egyptian)

819-795: A neutral position on almost all international issues. Niyazov eschewed membership in regional organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation , and in the late 1990s he maintained relations with the Taliban and its chief opponent in Afghanistan , the Northern Alliance . He offered limited support to the military campaign against the Taliban following the 11 September 2001 attacks . In 2002 an alleged assassination attempt against Niyazov led to

910-724: A new Constitution . The latter resulted in the abolition of the council and a significant increase in the size of Parliament in December 2008 and also permits the formation of multiple political parties. The Assembly ( Turkmen : Mejlis ) is since January 2023 the unicameral legislature of Turkmenistan. Between March 2021 and 21 January 2023 it was the lower house of the now defunct bicameral National Council of Turkmenistan ( Turkmen : Milli Geňeş ). It has 125 members, elected for five-year terms in single-seat constituencies . The People's Council of Turkmenistan ( Turkmen : Halk Maslahaty , [xɑlq mɑθlɑxɑt̪ɯ] ; "People's Council")

1001-423: A new wave of security restrictions, dismissals of government officials, and restrictions placed on the media. Niyazov accused exiled former foreign minister Boris Shikhmuradov of having planned the attack. Between 2002 and 2004, serious tension arose between Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan because of bilateral disputes and Niyazov's implication that Uzbekistan had a role in the 2002 assassination attempt. In 2004,

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1092-836: A particular route. For example, the oases of Awjila , Ghadames and Kufra , situated in modern-day Libya , have at various times been vital to both north–south and east–west trade in the Sahara Desert . The location of oases also informed the Darb El Arba'īn trade route from Sudan to Egypt, as well as the caravan route from the Niger River to Tangier , Morocco. The Silk Road "traced its course from water hole to water hole, relying on oasis communities such as Turpan in China and Samarkand in Uzbekistan." According to

1183-473: A series of bilateral treaties restored friendly relations. In the parliamentary elections of December 2004 and January 2005 , only Niyazov's party was represented, and no international monitors participated. In 2005, Niyazov exercised his dictatorial power by closing all hospitals outside Ashgabat and all rural libraries. The year 2006 saw intensification of the trends of arbitrary policy changes, shuffling of top officials, diminishing economic output outside

1274-462: A series of splits and confederations among the nomadic Turkmen tribes, who remained staunchly independent and inspired fear in their neighbors. By the 16th century, most of those tribes were under the nominal control of two sedentary Uzbek khanates , Khiva and Bukhoro . Turkmen soldiers were an important element of the Uzbek militaries of this period. In the 19th century, raids and rebellions by

1365-411: A shovel is needed. Wells may or may not be equipped with pumps. Frequently the pumps are broken and useless, and a rope and bucket are then necessary to obtain water. Most of the wells in this region are less than 100 feet deep, but some are deeper, and 100 feet of rope is not too much to provide. As a rule the rope and bucket at a well, if they were ever provided, soon disappear, and one should never trust

1456-643: A tie with Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo for 169th place globally, between Chad and Equatorial Guinea, with a score of 19 out of 100. Opposition media and foreign human rights organizations describe Turkmenistan as suffering from rampant corruption. A non-governmental organization, Crude Accountability , has openly called the economy of Turkmenistan a kleptocracy . Opposition and domestic state-controlled media have described widespread bribery in education and law enforcement. In 2019,

1547-628: A week earlier in elections that included only candidates hand-picked by President Niyazov. No opposition candidates were allowed. The former Communist Party, now known as the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan , is the dominant party. The second party, the Party of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs , was established in August 2012, and an agrarian party appeared two years later. Political gatherings are illegal unless government sanctioned. In 2013,

1638-556: Is Radio Azatlyk , the Turkmen-language service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty . Internet access is filtered and websites to which the government objects are blocked. Blocked websites include opposition news media, YouTube, many social media sites (including Facebook), and encrypted communications applications. Use of virtual private networks to circumvent censorship is prohibited. Transparency International 's 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index placed Turkmenistan in

1729-463: Is wahe or ouahe which means a "dwelling place". Oasis in Arabic is wāḥa ( Arabic : واحة ). Oases develop in " hydrologically favored" locations that have attributes such as a high water table , seasonal lakes, or blockaded wadis . Oases are made when sources of freshwater, such as underground rivers or aquifers , irrigate the surface naturally or via man-made wells. The presence of water on

1820-1068: Is 48.0  °C (118.4  °F ) and Kerki , an extreme inland city located on the banks of the Amu Darya river, recorded 51.7 °C (125.1 °F) in July 1983, although this value is unofficial. 50.1 °C (122 °F) is the highest temperature recorded at Repetek Reserve , recognized as the highest temperature ever recorded in the whole former Soviet Union. Turkmenistan enjoys 235–240 sunny days per year. The average number of degree days ranges from 4500 to 5000 Celsius, sufficient for production of extra long staple cotton. Turkmenistan contains seven terrestrial ecoregions: Alai-Western Tian Shan steppe , Kopet Dag woodlands and forest steppe , Badghyz and Karabil semi-desert , Caspian lowland desert , Central Asian riparian woodlands , Central Asian southern desert , and Kopet Dag semi-desert . Oasis In ecology , an oasis ( / oʊ ˈ eɪ s ɪ s / ; pl. : oases / oʊ ˈ eɪ s iː z / )

1911-489: Is Turkmenistan's independent "representative body" exerting supreme constitutional authority. It includes in its membership, but is not considered part of, the legislature . Inter alia it is empowered to amend the constitution. Its chairperson is appointed by the president and is designated the "National Leader". State media referred to the People's Council as the "supreme organ of government authority". From 2018 to 2023 it

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2002-480: Is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment that sustains plant life and provides habitat for animals. Surface water may be present, or water may only be accessible from wells or underground channels created by humans. In geography, an oasis may be a current or past rest stop on a transportation route, or less-than-verdant location that nonetheless provides access to underground water through deep wells created and maintained by humans. Although they depend on

2093-591: Is a major tourist attraction, with hundreds of visitors arriving each year. The area has significant oil and natural gas deposits. To the south the Murghab and Tejen rivers flow out of the Hindu Kush mountains, flow west, and empty into the desert, providing water for irrigation. The desert is crossed by the second-largest irrigation canal in the world, the Karakum Canal , which brings water from

2184-1089: Is a member of the United Nations , the International Monetary Fund , the World Bank , the Economic Cooperation Organization , the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe , the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation , the Islamic Development Bank , Asian Development Bank , European Bank for Reconstruction and Development , the Food and Agriculture Organization , International Organization of Turkic Culture and observer member of Organisation of Turkic States . Turkmenistan

2275-595: Is an observer state in the Organisation of Turkic States , the Türksoy community and a member of the United Nations . The name of Turkmenistan ( Turkmen : Türkmenistan ) can be divided into two components: the ethnonym Türkmen and the Persian suffix -stan meaning "place of" or "country". The name "Turkmen" comes from Turk, plus the Sogdian suffix -men, meaning "almost Turk", in reference to their status outside

2366-585: Is considered to be one of the "10 Most Censored Countries". Each broadcast under Niyazov began with a pledge that the broadcaster's tongue will shrivel if he slanders the country, flag, or president. Religious minorities are discriminated against for conscientious objection and practising their religion by imprisonment, preventing foreign travel, confiscating copies of Christian literature or defamation. Many detainees who have been arrested for exercising their freedom of religion or belief were tortured and subsequently sentenced to imprisonment, many of them without

2457-643: Is crossed by the Trans-Caspian Railway . Golden Age Lake , locally known as Altyn Asyr köli or alternatively as Karakum Lake, is a man-made lake under construction in the Karashor Depression in the Karakum Desert. Upon completion, the lake will span 2,000 square kilometres (770 sq mi) with a maximum depth of 70 metres (230 ft), and hold more than 130 cubic kilometers (4600 billion cubic feet) of water. Filling

2548-538: Is in a temperate desert zone with a dry continental climate. Remote from the open sea, with mountain ranges to the south and southeast, Turkmenistan's climate is characterized by low precipitation, low cloudiness, and high evaporation. Absence of mountains to the north allows cold Arctic air to penetrate southward to the southerly mountain ranges, which in turn block warm, moist air from the Indian Ocean. Limited winter and spring rains are attributable to moist air from

2639-480: Is integrated into its desert environment through an often close association with nomadic transhumant livestock farming (very often pastoral and sedentary populations are clearly distinguished). The fertility of the oasis soil is restored by "cyclic organic inputs of animal origin." In summary, an oasis palm grove is a highly anthropized and irrigated area that supports a traditionally intensive and polyculture-based agriculture. Responding to environmental constraints,

2730-563: Is mostly governed by the Interior Ministry . The Ministry of National Security (KNB) is the intelligence-gathering asset. The Interior Ministry commands the 25,000 personnel of the national police force directly, while the KNB deals with intelligence and counterintelligence work. Turkmenistan has been widely criticised for human rights abuses and has imposed severe restrictions on foreign travel for its citizens. Discrimination against

2821-502: Is severely curtailed, inhibiting free expression of the voters' will. Despite measures to demonstrate transparency, the integrity of elections was not ensured, leaving veracity of results in doubt The judiciary in Turkmenistan is not independent. Under Articles 71 and 100 of the constitution of Turkmenistan, the president appoints all judges, including the chairperson (chief justice) of the Supreme Court , and may dismiss them with

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2912-628: Is the 35th most-populous country in Asia and has the lowest population of the Central Asian republics while being one of the most sparsely populated nations on the Asian continent. Turkmenistan has long served as a thoroughfare for several empires and cultures. Merv is one of the oldest oasis-cities in Central Asia, and was once among the biggest cities in the world. It was also one of

3003-728: Is the 82nd most peaceful country in the world, according to the 2024 Global Peace Index . The Armed Forces of Turkmenistan ( Turkmen : Türkmenistanyň Ýaragly Güýçleri ), known informally as the Turkmen National Army ( Turkmen : Türkmenistanyň Milli goşun ) is the national military of Turkmenistan. It consists of the Ground Forces , the Air Force and Air Defense Forces , Navy , and other independent formations (etc. Border Troops , Internal Troops and National Guard ). The national police force in Turkmenistan

3094-423: Is the date palm ( Phoenix dactylifera L. ), which forms the upper layer . These palm trees provide shade for smaller understory trees like apricots , dates , figs , olives , and peach trees, which form the middle layer. Market-garden vegetables, some cereals (such as sorghum , barley , millet , and wheat ), and/or mixed animal fodder , are grown in the bottom layer where there is more moisture. The oasis

3185-538: Is the world's 52nd-largest country. It is slightly smaller than Spain and larger than Cameroon . It lies between latitudes 35° and 43° N , and longitudes 52° and 67° E . Over 80% of the country is covered by the Karakum Desert . The center of the country is dominated by the Turan Depression and the Karakum Desert. Topographically, Turkmenistan is bounded by the Ustyurt Plateau to the north,

3276-526: Is widely criticized for its poor human rights , including for its treatment of minorities, and its lack of press and religious freedoms. Since the independence declared from the Soviet Union in 1991, Turkmenistan has been ruled by repressive totalitarian regimes: that of President for Life Saparmurat Niyazov (also known as Türkmenbaşy or "Head of the Turkmens") until his death in 2006; Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow , who became president in 2007 after winning

3367-762: The Atrek (Etrek) River . Tributaries of the Atrek include the Sumbar River and Chandyr River . The Turkmen shore along the Caspian Sea is 1,748 kilometres (1,086 mi) long. The Caspian Sea is entirely landlocked, with no natural access to the ocean, although the Volga–Don Canal allows shipping access to and from the Black Sea . Major cities include Aşgabat , Türkmenbaşy (formerly Krasnovodsk), Balkanabat , Daşoguz , Türkmenabat , and Mary . Turkmenistan

3458-840: The Kopet Dag Range to the south, the Paropamyz Plateau, the Koytendag Range to the east, the Amu Darya Valley, and the Caspian Sea to the west. Turkmenistan includes three tectonic regions, the Epigersin platform region, the Alpine shrinkage region, and the Epiplatform orogenesis region. The Alpine tectonic region is the epicenter of earthquakes in Turkmenistan. Strong earthquakes occurred in

3549-593: The Russian Revolution of 1917 had little direct impact, in the 1920s Turkmen forces joined Kazakhs , Kyrgyz , and Uzbeks in the so-called Basmachi rebellion against the rule of the newly formed Soviet Union . In 1921 the tsarist province of Transcaspia ( Russian : Закаспийская область , 'Transcaspian Oblast') was renamed Turkmen Oblast ( Russian : Туркменская область ), and in 1924, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic

3640-573: The Western Desert of Egypt ( Kharga , Dakhla , Farafra , Baharyia , and Siwa ) once had "flowing spring and wells" but due to the decline of groundwater heads because of overuse for land reclamation projects those water sources are no more and the oases suffer as a result. Morocco has lost two-thirds of its oasis habitat over the last 100 years due to heat, drought, and water scarcity . The Ferkla Oases in Morocco once drew on water from

3731-662: The Yomud Turkmen group resulted in that group's dispersal by the Uzbek rulers. In 1855 the Turkmen tribe of Teke led by Gowshut-Khan defeated the invading army of the Khan of Khiva Muhammad Amin Khan and in 1861 the invading Persian army of Nasreddin-Shah . In the second half of the 19th century, northern Turkmens were the main military and political power in the Khanate of Khiva . According to Paul R. Spickard, "Prior to

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3822-705: The Ahal area of Turkmenistan . However, in 1881, the last significant resistance in Turkmen territory was crushed at the Battle of Geok Tepe , and shortly thereafter Turkmenistan was annexed, together with adjoining Uzbek territory, into the Russian Empire . In 1916, the Russian Empire's participation in World War I resonated in Turkmenistan, as an anticonscription revolt swept most of Russian Central Asia. Although

3913-653: The Amu Darya to southern regions of the desert. Construction on the canal was started in 1954 and completed in 1958. It is 1,375 km (900 mi) in length, and carries 13 to 20 km of water annually. Within the Karakum are the Uly Balkan , a mountain range in which archaeologists have found human remains dating back to the Stone Age . The oases of Mary and Tejen are noted for cotton growing. The desert

4004-706: The Aral Sea along the Akcha Dar'ya population corridor of that low, gentle valley (a remote community of Western Uzbekistan and north-east Turkmenistan). The sands of the Aral Karakum are made of finely-dispersed evaporites and remnants of alkaline mineral deposits, washed into the basin from irrigated fields. Wildlife in this area is not very diverse and includes insects and arachnids such as ants , termites , ticks , spiders , dung beetles , and darkling beetles. Lizards , turtles and snakes also live in

4095-434: The Caspian Sea. The delta is that of the Amu Darya river to the northeast, demarcating the long border with the Kyzylkum Desert of Uzbekistan . The desert is divided into three regions, the elevated northern Trans-Unguz Karakum, the low-lying Central Karakum, and the southeastern Karakum, home to a chain of salt marshes . Since the early 1980s, the relatively small desert extension, the Aralkum , has come to occupy most of

4186-431: The Ferkla, Sat and Tangarfa Rivers but they are now dry but for a few days a year. A 1920 USGS publication about watering holes in the deserts of California and Arizona gave this advice for travelers seeking oases: The usual watering places are springs or wells. Springs are frequently clogged with gravel or rubbish or sometimes even with the bodies of dead animals, and it may be necessary to clean them out. For this work

4277-432: The Karakum. Bird species include Alauda , desert sparrows , and other species, while rodents include jerboas and gophers . The tolai hare , goitered gazelle , and corsac fox are examples of mammal species in the Karakum Desert. The Karakum is home to the Darvaza gas crater . Also called the "Door to Hell" or the "Gates of Hell" by locals, it is a crater of natural gas that has been burning since 1971. The crater

4368-448: The Kopet Dag Range in 1869, 1893, 1895, 1929, 1948, and 1994. The city of Ashgabat and surrounding villages were largely destroyed by the 1948 earthquake . The Kopet Dag Range , along the southwestern border, reaches 2,912 metres (9,554 feet ) at Kuh-e Rizeh (Mount Rizeh). The Great Balkhan Range in the west of the country ( Balkan Province ) and the Köýtendag Range on the southeastern border with Uzbekistan ( Lebap Province ) are

4459-416: The Russian conquest, the Turkmen were known and feared for their involvement in the Central Asian slave trade ." Russian forces began occupying Turkmen territory late in the 19th century. From their Caspian Sea base at Krasnovodsk (now Türkmenbaşy ), the Russians eventually overcame the Uzbek khanates. In 1879, the Russian forces were defeated by the Teke Turkmens during the first attempt to conquer

4550-438: The Soviet Union, in October 1991, the fragmentation of that entity forced him to call a national referendum that approved independence. On 26 December 1991, the Soviet Union ceased to exist. Niyazov continued as Turkmenistan's chief of state, replacing communism with a unique brand of independent nationalism reinforced by a pervasive cult of personality . A 1994 referendum and legislation in 1999 abolished further requirements for

4641-450: The Turkic dynastic mythological system. However, some scholars argue the suffix is an intensifier , changing the meaning of Türkmen to "pure Turks" or "the Turkish Turks." Muslim chroniclers like Ibn Kathir suggested that the etymology of Turkmenistan came from the words Türk and iman ( Arabic : إيمان , lit.   'faith/belief'); this is in reference to a massive conversion to Islam of two hundred thousand households in

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4732-541: The United Nations, "Oases are at the very heart of the overall development of peri-Saharan countries due to their geographical location and the fact they are preferred migration routes in times of famine or insecurity in the region." Oases in Oman , on the Arabian Peninsula near the Persian Gulf , vary somewhat from the Saharan form. While still located in an arid or semi-arid zone with a date palm overstory, these oases are usually located below plateaus and "watered either by springs or by aflaj , tunnel systems dug into

4823-435: The city [ medina ] or village [ ksar ] with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system." The location of oases has been of critical importance for trade and transportation routes in desert areas; caravans must travel via oases so that supplies of water and food can be replenished. Thus, political or military control of an oasis has in many cases meant control of trade on

4914-504: The consent of the Parliament. Outside observers consider the Turkmen legislature to be a rubber stamp parliament, and thus despite constitutional guarantees of judicial independence under Articles 98 and 99, the judiciary is de facto firmly under presidential control. The chief justice is considered a member of the executive authority of the government and sits on the State Security Council . The U.S. Department of State stated in its 2020-human rights report on Turkmenistan, Although

5005-420: The country's ethnic minorities remains in practice. Universities have been encouraged to reject applicants with non-Turkmen surnames, especially ethnic Russians. It is forbidden to teach the customs and language of the Baloch , an ethnic minority. The same happens to Uzbeks, though the Uzbek language was formerly taught in some national schools. According to Human Rights Watch , "Turkmenistan remains one of

5096-404: The country's independence. Historically inhabited by Indo-Iranians , Turkmenistan's written history begins with its annexation by the Achaemenid Empire of Ancient Iran. After centuries of turmoil, over a thousand years later, in the 8th century AD, Turkic -speaking Oghuz tribes moved from Mongolia into present-day Central Asia. Part of a powerful confederation of tribes, these Oghuz formed

5187-408: The country. His successor, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow , repealed some of Niyazov's most idiosyncratic policies, including banning operas and circuses for being "insufficiently Turkmen" , though other such rules were later put into place such as the banning of non-white cars. In education, Berdimuhamedow's government increased basic education to ten years from nine years, and higher education

5278-400: The course of major world events. Even the major liberalization movement that shook Russia in the late 1980s had little impact. However, in 1990, the Supreme Soviet of Turkmenistan declared sovereignty as a nationalist response to perceived exploitation by Moscow . Although Turkmenistan was ill-prepared for independence and then- communist leader Saparmurat Niyazov preferred to preserve

5369-460: The dull bluish or gray green of the feathery crowns of foliage. It is small wonder that a whole folklore of poetic legends and proverbs has grown up around the date palm in the regions where it flourishes. Many historic oases have struggled with drought and inadequate maintenance. According to a United Nations report on the future of oases in the Sahara and Sahel , "Increasingly   ... oases are subject to various pressures, heavily influenced by

5460-447: The effects of climate change , decreasing groundwater levels and a gradual loss of cultural heritage due to a fading historical memory concerning traditional water management techniques. These natural pressures are compounded by demographic pressures and the introduction of modern water pumping techniques that can disrupt traditional resource management schemes, particularly in the North Saharan oases." For example, five historic oases in

5551-406: The ethnic basis of the modern Turkmen population. In the 10th century, the name "Turkmen" was first applied to Oghuz groups that accepted Islam and began to occupy present-day Turkmenistan. There they were under the dominion of the Seljuk Empire , which was composed of Oghuz groups living in present-day Iran and Turkmenistan. Oghuz groups in the service of the empire played an important role in

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5642-443: The first multi-party parliamentary elections were held in Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan was a one-party state from 1991 to 2012; however, the 2013 elections were widely seen as rigged. In practice, all parties in parliament operate jointly under the direction of the DPT. There are no true opposition parties in the Turkmen parliament. Since the December 2006 death of Niyazov, Turkmenistan's leadership has made tentative moves to open up

5733-457: The former seabed of the Aral Sea , about 15,440 sq mi (40,000 km). The sea has fluctuated over millennia, but its majority loss during the Soviet Union 's existence coincided with great irrigation projects. The North Aral Sea was partly restored, but the South Aral Sea ebbed to a small-size stasis at its river mouth, which itself dried up by 2014, leaving only fragments of the former sea behind, such as Barsakelmes Lake . Within

5824-649: The garden resembles a tropical jungle. Very beautiful are these gardens in the spring, when the apricot and peach trees are in blossom here and there among the palms and the figs and vines are putting forth their leaves. In autumn, when the dates are ripening, the color effects, especially when the tops of the palms are lit up by the last rays of the setting sun, are something that once seen can never be forgotten. The great clusters of fruit, displaying every tint from bright yellow, through orange, vermilion, and maroon, to plum purple and chestnut brown, with their brilliant yellow or rich orange ivory-like stalks, contrast superbly with

5915-501: The government indicated that all existing satellite dishes would have to be removed or destroyed—despite the communications receiving antennas having been legally installed since 1995—in an effort by the government to fully block access of the population to many "hundreds of independent international media outlets" which are currently accessible in the country only through satellite dishes, including all leading international news channels in different languages. The main target of this campaign

6006-425: The great cities of the Islamic world and an important stop on the Silk Road . Annexed by the Russian Empire in 1881, Turkmenistan figured prominently in the anti-Bolshevik movement in Central Asia. In 1925, Turkmenistan became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union , the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic (Turkmen SSR); it became independent after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The country

6097-555: The ground or carved into the rock to tap underground aquifers." This rainwater harvesting system "never developed a serious salinity problem." In the drylands of southwestern North America, there is a habitat form called Palm Oasis (alternately Palm Series or Oasis Scrub Woodland) that has the native California fan palm as the overstory species. These Palm Oases can be found in California , Arizona , Baja California , and Sonora . People who live in an oasis must manage land and water use carefully. The most important plant in an oasis

6188-502: The lake could take 15 years and cost up to $ 4.5 billion. According to government plans, it is intended to be filled by a 2,650-kilometer (1,650 mi) network of tributary canals. The Dashoguz Collector, spanning a distance of 432 kilometers, traces approximately half of its course along the historic path of the Uzboy River . The Great Turkmen Collector starts in Lebap Province and is 720 km (450 mi) long. They are used for pumping run-off water from irrigated cotton fields towards

6279-439: The lake. Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest , Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast , Afghanistan to the southeast , Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ashgabat is the capital and largest city . It is one of the six independent Turkic states. With a population over 7 million, Turkmenistan

6370-477: The law provides for an independent judiciary, the executive controls it, and it is subordinate to the executive. There was no legislative review of the president's judicial appointments and dismissals. The president had sole authority to dismiss any judge. The judiciary was widely reputed to be corrupt and inefficient. Many national laws of Turkmenistan have been published online on the Ministry of Justice website. Turkmenistan's declaration of "permanent neutrality"

6461-447: The national chief of police, Minister of Internal Affairs Isgender Mulikov , was convicted and imprisoned for corruption. In 2020, the deputy prime minister for education and science, Pürli Agamyradow, was dismissed for failure to control bribery in education. The illegal adoption of abandoned babies in Turkmenistan is blamed on rampant corruption in the agencies involved in the legal adoption process which pushes some parents to

6552-637: The north-west edge of the desert used to be a river. In the late Pleistocene , the Amu Darya used to flow beyond the Aral Basin to Sarykamysh Lake then to the Caspian Sea. Sedimentation and floods during a pluvial period led to overflow to the Zeravshan River valley to the east. The two flows merged and formed or expanded Horezm Lake, which had been formed by the earlier Khvalinian period, and as it overflowed northwards it carved its link with

6643-446: The oil and gas sector, and isolation from regional and world organizations. China was among a very few nations to whom Turkmenistan made significant overtures. The sudden death of Niyazov at the end of 2006 left a complete vacuum of power, as his cult of personality , comparable to the one of eternal president Kim Il Sung of North Korea , had precluded the naming of a successor. Deputy Prime Minister Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow , who

6734-590: The only other significant elevations. The Great Balkhan Range rises to 1,880 metres (6,170 ft) at Mount Arlan and the highest summit in Turkmenistan is Ayrybaba in the Kugitangtau Range – 3,137 metres (10,292 ft). The Kopet Dag mountain range forms most of the border between Turkmenistan and Iran. Major rivers include the Amu Darya , the Murghab River , the Tejen River , and

6825-688: The potential evapotranspiration of the areas was reduced by 30 to 50 percent within the oasis." The keystone date palm trees are "a main income source and staple food for local populations in many countries in which they are cultivated, and have played significant roles in the economy, society, and environment of those countries." Challenges for date palm oasis polycultures include "low rainfall, high temperatures, water resources often high in salt content, and high incidence of pests." The oases consist of almost unbroken forests of date palms, divided up into many gardens that are separated by mud walls and intersected by innumerable irrigation and drainage ditches… In

6916-434: The president to stand for re-election (although in 1992 he completely dominated the only presidential election in which he ran, as he was the only candidate and no one else was allowed to run for the office), making him effectively president for life . During his tenure, Niyazov conducted frequent purges of public officials and abolished organizations deemed threatening. Throughout the post-Soviet era, Turkmenistan has taken

7007-399: The shade of the palms are grown many other kinds of fruit trees—oranges, olives, figs, apricots, peaches, pomegranates, and jujubes—interlaced with large grape vines that often hang in festoons from the palm trunks. Beneath the trees are small plots of garden vegetables, barley, and alfalfa. Neither date palms nor other trees are planted with any regularity, and the growth is often so dense that

7098-544: The spreading of Turkic culture when they migrated westward into present-day Azerbaijan and eastern Turkey . In the 12th century, Turkmen and other tribes overthrew the Seljuk Empire. In the next century, the Mongols took over the more northern lands where the Turkmens had settled, scattering the Turkmens southward and contributing to the formation of new tribal groups. The sixteenth and eighteenth centuries saw

7189-593: The surface or underground is necessary and the local or regional management of this essential resource is strategic, but not sufficient to create such areas: continuous human work and know-how (a technical and social culture) are essential to maintain such ecosystems. Some of the possible human contributions to maintaining an oasis include digging and maintaining wells, digging and maintaining canals, and continuously removing opportunistic plants that threaten to gorge themselves on water and fertility needed to maintain human and animal food supplies. Stereotypically, an oasis has

7280-474: The surface. Any incidence of water is then used by migrating birds , which also pass seeds with their droppings which will grow at the water's edge forming an oasis. It can also be used to plant crops. Oases in the Middle East and North Africa cover about 1,000,000 hectares (10,000 km ), however, they support the livelihood of about 10 million inhabitants. The stark ratio of oasis to desert land in

7371-426: The three strata create what is called the " oasis effect ". The three layers and all their interaction points create a variety of combinations of "horizontal wind speed, relative air temperature and relative air humidity." The plantings—through a virtuous cycle of wind reduction, increased shade and evapotranspiration —create a microclimate favorable to crops; "measurements taken in different oases have showed that

7462-648: The water into individual plots, soaking the soil." Oases often have human histories that are measured in millennia. Archeological digs at Ein Gedi in the Dead Sea Valley have found evidence of settlement dating to 6,000 BC. Al-Ahsa on the Arabian Peninsula shows evidence of human residence dating to the Neolithic . Anthropologically , the oasis is "an area of sedentary life, which associates

7553-530: The west, originating in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Winters are mild and dry, with most precipitation falling between January and May. The Kopet Dag Range receives the highest level of precipitation. The Karakum Desert is one of the driest deserts in the world; some places have an average annual precipitation of only 12 mm (0.47 in). The highest temperature recorded in Ashgabat

7644-400: The world means that the oasis ecosystem is "relatively minute, rare and precious." There are 90 “major oases” within the Sahara Desert. Some of their fertility may derive from irrigation systems called foggaras , khettaras , lkhttarts , or a variety of other regional names . In some oases systems, there is "a geometrical system of raised channels that release controlled amounts of

7735-473: The world's most repressive countries. The country is virtually closed to independent scrutiny, media and religious freedoms are subject to draconian restrictions, and human rights defenders and other activists face the constant threat of government reprisal." According to Reporters Without Borders 's 2014 World Press Freedom Index, Turkmenistan had the 3rd worst press freedom conditions in the world (178/180 countries), just before North Korea and Eritrea . It

7826-425: The year 971. Turkmenistan declared its independence from the Soviet Union after the independence referendum in 1991. As a result, the constitutional law was adopted on 27 October of that year and Article 1 established the new name of the state: Turkmenistan ( Türkmenistan / Түркменистан). A common name for the Turkmen SSR was Turkmenia ( Russian : Туркмения , romanization : Turkmeniya), used in some reports of

7917-514: Was extended from four years to five. Berdimuhamedow was succeeded by his son Serdar in 2022 . The politics of Turkmenistan take place in the framework of a presidential republic , with the President both head of state and head of government . Under Niyazov, Turkmenistan had a one-party system ; however, in September 2008, the People's Council unanimously passed a resolution adopting

8008-503: Was formally recognized by the United Nations in 1995. Former President Saparmurat Niyazov stated that the neutrality would prevent Turkmenistan from participating in multi-national defense organizations, but allows military assistance. Its neutral foreign policy has an important place in the country's constitution . Turkmenistan has diplomatic relations with 139 countries, some of the most important partners being Afghanistan , Armenia , Iran , Pakistan and Russia . Turkmenistan

8099-425: Was formed from it. By the late 1930s, Soviet reorganization of agriculture had destroyed what remained of the nomadic lifestyle in Turkmenistan, and Moscow controlled political life. The Ashgabat earthquake of 1948 killed over 110,000 people, amounting to two-thirds of the city's population. During the next half-century, Turkmenistan played its designated economic role within the Soviet Union and remained outside

8190-446: Was named interim head of government, won a non-democratic special presidential election held in early February 2007. His appointment as interim president and subsequent run for president violated the constitution. Berdimuhamedow won two additional non-democratic elections, with approximately 97% of the vote in both 2012 and 2017 . His son Serdar Berdimuhamedow won a non-democratic snap presidential election in 2022, establishing

8281-507: Was the upper chamber of the National Council of Turkmenistan. Outside observers consider the Turkmen legislature to be a rubber stamp parliament. The 2018 OSCE election observer mission noted, The 25 March elections lacked important prerequisites of a genuinely democratic electoral process. The political environment is only nominally pluralist and does not offer voters political alternatives. Exercise of fundamental freedoms

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