APresident · 1990 – 2006Independent states
Saparmurat Niyazov
Turkmenistan's first president (1940–2006), known as Türkmenbaşy, under whom the UN recognised the country's permanent neutrality.
First Secretary of the Communist Party of Turkmenistan from 1985, Saparmurat Niyazov became president of the republic in 1990; Turkmenistan declared independence on 27 October 1991.
In 1995 the UN General Assembly recognised Turkmenistan's permanent neutrality. He took the title Türkmenbaşy ("head of the Turkmens"), wrote the Ruhnama and was declared president for life in 1999. He died in December 2006.
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Updated: October 4, 2026