Turkmen Embassy in Russia denies information on infringing on rights of people with dual citizenship

The Turkmen Embassy in Moscow states that no Russian citizens have been evicted from their apartments in Ashkhabad.

"Turkmenistan does not allow infringing on property right of people with dual citizenship," the Turkmen Embassy in Moscow informed RIA Novosti on Friday.

The agency interlocutor who wished to remain anonymous stressed that "there was no panic, let alone evictions in Ashkhabad".

The diplomat said that information of some media concerning the fact that only Turkmen citizens had property rights in the republic was "complete nonsense".

In this context the diplomat recalled that in compliance with the 1993 Russo-Turkmen agreement on protection of immigrants' rights, which "is of more importance than the agreement on observing dual citizenship rights", anyone willing to leave the country receives "absolute protection of property rights".

Besides, "today any foreigner can buy an apartment in Ashkhabad", the agency's interlocutor stressed.

Turkmen President Sapamurat Niyazov unilaterally determined that people of dual Russian-Turkmen citizenship had to choose either of them till June 2003.

Director of the CIS Institute Konstantin Zatulin said at a press conference held on June 23rd in Moscow that the choice of Russian citizenship threatened Russians with serious consequences in Turkmenistan. He also stated that according to the Turkmen legislation, people without Turkmen citizenship were automatically deprived of the right to own property in the country. According to Zatulin, in fact, it was an unprecedented case of arbitrariness against tens of thousands of Russian citizens.

A total of 300,000 ethnic Russians are currently living in Turkmenistan, with 100,000 out of them having no real possibility to move to Russia, mostly due to their bad financial situation, Zatulin informed.