During a telephone conversation, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov invited Dmitry Medvedev to visit Ashgabat on the final day of the off-road rally "Silk Road-2009" that will pass through Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan from 5 to 13 September.

Dmitry Medvedev accepted the invitation with gratitude, says the official report. The presidents stressed the importance of the forthcoming rally "as an event whose importance goes far beyond a purely sporting action."

During the conversation, the head of the Russian Federation "warmly and cordially congratulated Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov on his birthday and wished him good health, happiness and new successes in state work and in all noble undertakings."

"Thanking Dmitry Medvedev for the congratulation and good wishes Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov noted that Turkmenistan values the relations of sincere friendship and close cooperation with Russia that today are gaining a new momentum corresponding to their enormous potential and mutual interests of the peoples of the two states," the official report says.

The sides also "discussed the pace of implementation of bilateral agreements, priority areas for further constructive cooperation, especially in the energy sector, as well as topical international policy issues of mutual interest."