RFE/RL's Turkmen Service is the only international Turkmen-language media reporting independently on political, economic, cultural, and security issues from inside one of the the world’s most reclusive countries.
Turkmenistan, a Central Asian country where sandy deserts account for 80 percent its territory, is prepared to pay 1 million pounds ($1,289,000) to British company Andrew Bowen Ltd. for 10,000 tons of sand that it wants to use for a new horse-racing track.
The Turkmen president says his government has an urgent duty to encourage young people to play national games and learn Turkmen traditions -- instead of wasting their time on mobile phones.
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has dismissed National Security Minister Yaylym Berdiev less than a month after he publicly rebuked him for perceived shortcomings in his performance.
Males working at state organizations in Turkmenistan's northeastern region of Lebap have been ordered not to dye their hair ahead of an expected visit by the Central Asian nation's autocratic leader, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.
Poverty has hit many in energy-rich Turkmenistan, where extreme economic problems have forced some to rummage through trash cans for food, and there have even been battles over the right to garbage dumpsters.
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has handed down a "severe" reprimand to his national security chief and the defense minister over perceived shortcomings in their performance.
An ethnic Turkmen family in northern Afghanistan was homeless and desperate -- so they took shelter in a cemetery alongside other destitute people. But when locals learned about the family's troubles from a report by RFE/RL's Turkmen Service, they stepped forward to help.
The U.S. Embassy in Ashgabat says Washington remains committed to a strong relationship with Turkmenistan as officials in Ashgabat are angered by a Netflix movie loosely based on life in Turkmenistan.
A new Netflix movie, 6 Underground, is about a tech billionaire who tries to take down an evil dictator in a fictional country called Turgistan. The film appears to be inspired by Turkmenistan and its real-life dictator, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov.
Many impoverished Turkmen families are avoiding hospital treatment and conventional medicine as prices for health care and drugs have skyrocketed in recent years.
A former manager of Germany's MAN company has gone on trial in Munich on charges of bribing top officials at the Turkmen state oil company.
Former Turkmen Interior Minister Isgender Mulikov, fired by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov in October, has been convicted of abuse of power and corruption.
A Turkmen doctor who came out as gay in an interview with RFE/RL was again incommunicado for weeks before reappearing, his friends say, sparking fears he may have been put under pressure by the government or his family.
Against a backdrop of at least informal efforts to discourage female drivers, women in the Turkmen capital say officials are refusing to renew their driving licenses.
Overweight police have suddenly taken up jogging and working out across Turkmenistan after being told to shape up or ship out.
Opera has returned to Turkmenistan after nearly 19 years of being banned along with ballet by the Central Asian country's first post-Soviet president as "incompatible with Turkmen mentality."
Faced with a severe shortage of cash at home, tens of thousands of Turkmen are travelling to neighboring Uzbekistan to get money from ATMs.
A 24-year-old doctor from Turkmenistan who admitted he was gay and went missing on October 24 after obeying a police summons has reappeared at his home and has recanted his comments.
A young cardiologist who told the story of his tormented life as a gay man in Turkmenistan has disappeared after being summoned by police. His family has also vanished in a country where homosexuality is still considered a crime.
School administrators in Turkmenistan’s Mary Province have told female students to undergo gynecological tests to prevent teenage pregnancies and immoral behavior.
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