Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang will visit Turkmenistan on June 23-24. The following are some basic facts about Turkmenistan:

Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in southwestern Central Asia. It borders Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in the north and northeast, the Caspian Sea in the west, Iran in the south and Afghanistan in the southeast.

Turkmenistan covers an area of 491,200 square kilometers with a population of 6.84 million, most of them Muslim. It is a country with more than 100 ethnic groups. Turkmens, the largest group, account for 94.7 percent of the population.

The country's official language is Turkmen while Russian is also commonly used. The capital is Ashgabat.

Turkmenistan declared independence on Oct. 27, 1991, and joined the Commonwealth of Independent States on Dec. 21, 1991. It became a member of the United Nations in March 1992. In December 1995, the 50th General Assembly of the United Nations passed a resolution to recognize Turkmenistan as a permanent neutral nation.

Turkmenistan, with 80 percent of its land covered by desert, is rich in mineral resources, mainly oil, natural gas, mirabilite, iodine, and nonferrous and rare metals. Oil and natural gas are the pillar industries of the country. Its main agricultural products are cotton and wheat.

China and Turkmenistan established diplomatic relations in January 1992. Since then, leaders of the two countries have maintained an exchange of visits. Bilateral relations have developed rapidly, and bilateral cooperation in various fields has been intensifying.

Source: Xinhua