Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan is a republic located in the southwest of Central Asia. The Karakum Desert occupies 85% of the country's land area, and most of the population lives in cities along the mountains in the south. It has abundant oil and natural gas reserves. It faces the Caspian Sea to the west and shares borders with Afghanistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. Its capital is Ashgabat. It is a permanently neutral country. From the end of the 20th century to the 21st century, the country was under a long dictatorship by President Niyazov, who achieved independence from the Soviet Union, but has since been on a path of openness.