In particular, he refused to pass on to the government the revenues gained from custom taxes on goods from Iran and Turkmenistan.

This changed in 1991, when Turkmenistan gained independence and established full control over gas export and export revenues.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, five Central Asian countries gained independence — Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

Other states such as Belarus, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan prohibit re-broadcasting to local stations, making programming difficult for average listeners to access.

At the present day, evaporite deposits can be seen accumulating in basins that merely have restricted access but do not completely dry out ; they provide an analogue to some deposits recognised in the geological record, such as the Garabogazköl basin in Turkmenistan.

*. tm, the Internet domain code for Turkmenistan

Internet usage in Turkmenistan is under tight control by the government and websites run by human rights organizations and news agencies are blocked.

Internet censorship in Turkmenistan was classified as pervasive in the political area and as selective in the social, conflict / security, and Internet tools areas by the OpenNet Initiative in December 2010.

Turkmenistan was listed as an Internet enemy by Reporters Without Borders in 2011.

* Internet Enemies: Turkmenistan, Reporters Without Borders

. tm is the Internet country code top-level domain ( ccTLD ) for Turkmenistan.

Most of these anthems were replaced during or after the collapse of the USSR ; Belarus, Kazakhstan ( until 2006 ), Tajikistan, Turkmenistan ( until 1997 ), and Uzbekistan kept the melodies, but with different lyrics.

The Taliban and Unocal were in negotiations in Texas to discuss arrangements for the gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan in 1997 and a deal was struck but later failed.

In 1997 ( well after independence ), the anthem was changed to " Independent, Neutral, Turkmenistan State Anthem ", the music and lyrics of which were written by President-for-Life Saparmurat Niyazov.

On 27 October 1997, CentGas was incorporated in formal signing ceremonies in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, by several international oil companies along with the Government of Turkmenistan.

File: Flag of Turkmenistan ( 1992-1997 ). svg | Flag used from 1992 to 1997

File: Flag of Turkmenistan ( 1997-2001 ). svg | Flag used from 1997 to 2001

# Turkmenistan, Ashgabat in 1997

* 1997 NBP branch in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan commenced operations.

* Turkmenistan-same gauge ( former Soviet Union railway system ) ( No direct link, passing through Uzbekistan, but proposed railway will pass throgh Turkmenistan and link Kazakhstan to Iran )

Turkmenistan has the fourth largest gas reserves and has been actively on the lookout to build transportation routes to large markets and the route through Afghanistan has been the most feasible and economical.

The $ 139 million Korpeje-Kurt Kui gas pipeline in western Turkmenistan and the $ 167 million Dousti ( Friendship in Persian ) Dam in the south of the country were built through a joint venture.

The world's largest steppe region, often referred to as " the Great Steppe ", is found in southwestern Russia and neighbouring countries in Central Asia, stretching from Ukraine in the west through Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan to the Altai, Koppet Dag and Tian Shan ranges.

* The Caspian Sea borders between Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkmenistan are not yet determined, although this problem is set to be resolved peacefully in the coming years through slow negotiations.

Turkmenistan eastwards through Pamir and Alay Mountains to Himalaya.

The Grey Hypocolius ranges through the Middle East, breeding in the Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan area, and wintering mostly near the Red Sea and Persian Gulf coasts of Arabia, including Bahrain.

There are two subspecies: the nominate garrulus, which breeds from in north Africa from Morocco east to Tunisia, southwest and south-central Europe and Asia Minor east through northwest Iran to southwest Siberia ; and semenowi, which breeds in Iraq and Iran ( except northwest ) east to Kashmir and north to Turkmenistan, south Kazakhstan and northwest China ( west Xinjiang ).

These birds migrate south through Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Armenia, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Turkey, to key wintering sites in Israel, Syria, Eritrea, Sudan and north-west India.

The pipeline will transport Caspian Sea natural gas from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India.

One alternative was through Taskepri in Turkmenistan to Shebarghan and then through Balakh, Mazar-i-Sharif, Samangan, Kabul and Jalalabad in Afghanistan, and Peshawar, Nowshera, Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan to India.

It is a resident breeder from south-eastern Turkey eastwards through Iran to southwest Turkmenistan and northeast India.

The main route starts in Helsinki, Finland, and continues through Russia to the Caspian Sea, where it splits into three routes: a western route through Azerbaijan, Armenia, and western Iran ; a central route across the Caspian Sea to Iran via ferry ; and an eastern route through Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to eastern Iran.

The player leads a four-man team ( three AI-controlled teammates ) of United States Navy SEALs through 12 missions in four regions: Alaska, Thailand, Congo, and Turkmenistan in the years 2006 and 2007.

The Turan Depression, Turan Lowland or Turanian Basin is a low-lying desert basin region stretching from southern Turkmenistan through Uzbekistan to Kazakhstan.

Using modern names for the countries through which he passed, Clavijo sailed along the Black Sea coast of Turkey to Trabzon and then overland through Armenia, Iran and Turkmenistan to Uzbekistan.

J. regia is native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, extending from Xinjiang province of western China, parts of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and southern Kirghizia and from lower ranges of mountains in Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, northern India and Pakistan, through Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Iran to portions of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and eastern Turkey.

In 2004 he realized that he had unknowingly travelled most of the Silk Road, so he completed the route crossing Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, reaching China at Kashgar through the Tien Shan ( Mountains of Heaven ) and from there crossing the Taklamakan Desert to Turpan ( Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, Bezeklik ).

The Russian tortoise ranges from Afghanistan to north-western China, through the countries of Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, and Pakistan.

It was located in the valley of the river Murghab which has its sources in the mountains of Afghanistan, and passes through Murghab District in modern Afghanistan, and then reaches the oasis of Merv in modern Turkmenistan.

Azerbaijan currently has diplomatic relations with 160 countries: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, the People's Republic of China, Denmark, Egypt, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kuwait, Libya, Luxembourg, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Qatar, Republic of India, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Togo, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

Afghan Turkestan is a region in northern Afghanistan, on the border with the former Soviet republics of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Since the collapse of the Taliban government in 2001, new trade relations are emerging with the United States, Pakistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, the EU, Japan, Uzbekistan, India and other countries.

No seabed boundary with Turkmenistan in the Caspian Sea has been agreed upon and the usage of Caspian Sea water is a matter that remains unsettled by international agreement.

As in the Soviet era, Kyrgyzstan has the right to 25 % of the water that originates in its territory, but the new agreement allows Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan unlimited use of the water that flows into them from Kyrgyzstan, with no compensation for the nation at the source.

The system connects the main urban centers of western Tajikistan with points in neighboring Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

The type of desertification caused by year-round pasturing of cattle has been termed the most devastating in Central Asia, with the gravest situations in Turkmenistan and the Kazakh steppe along the eastern and northern coasts of the Caspian Sea.

Turkmenistan has announced plans to clean up some of the Aral Sea fallout with financial support from the World Bank.

The most productive cotton lands in Turkmenistan ( the middle and lower Amu Darya and the Murgap oasis ) receive as much as 250 kilograms of fertilizer per hectare, compared with the average application of thirty kilograms per hectare.

Formally, according to the Constitution, citizens of Turkmenistan have the right to set up political parties and other public associations, acting within the framework of the Constitution and laws, and public associations and groups of citizens have the right to nominate their candidates in accordance with the election law.

Turkmenistan is largely desert country with nomadic cattle raising, intensive agriculture in irrigated oases, and huge gas and oil resources.

However the price growth continued and by November 1996 the total price level in Turkmenistan had increased tens of thousands times in comparison with December 1991.

However, in recent years state policy makers have increased the range of crops with the aim of making Turkmenistan self-sufficient in food.

The Tejen – Serakhs – Mashhad railroad, built in 1996 by Turkmenistan and Iran, has become a vital link of Central Asian, Russian, and European railroad systems with South Asia and the Persian Gulf.

Although the Government of Turkmenistan claims to favour trade with and export to the United States and Turkey, it has significant commercial relationships with Russia and Iran and a growing cross-border trade with Afghanistan.

Turkmenistan has no common land or Caspian Sea border with Russia.

As of 1 April 2011, there were 44 enterprises with Afghan assets in Turkmenistan.

* Turkmenistan closes border with Uzbekistan

Landlocked Afghanistan has no seaports but the Amu Darya river, which forms part of the nation's border with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, does have barge traffic.

In the early 2000s, tensions also developed with neighboring states Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan.

A shallow lake, Sarygamysh Lake, sits on the border with Turkmenistan.

There are rail links with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan ( see Trans-Caspian Railway ), Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan.