Peskov told reporters, “The CIS summit will be held in Turkmenistan; it is always an important event because the CIS format has shown over decades that it remains useful and necessary for member countries.”

President Vladimir Putin is traveling to the Turkmen capital for a two-day working visit to attend a meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of State and the Caspian Ecological Summit, both in the Awaza resort zone on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea.

Formed in 1991 after the Soviet Union was dissolved, the CIS currently comprises Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Turkmenistan has held associate member status since 2005 and holds the organization’s rotating presidency this year.

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