Nobody really knew what to expect when the Turkmenbashi, Saparmurat Niyazov, died last year – such is the confusion and opacity of closed societies. With the appointment of the new president of Turkmenistan, the former dentist and health minister Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, a lot of people were guessing in which direction would the country lean – toward an opening to the West or into the waiting embrace of Moscow? Surely Beijing isn’t asleep at the wheel with its its energy interests in Central Asia either. The geopolitical ramifications of Turkmenistan’s foreign relations cannot be underestimated – sitting atop one of the world’s largest natural gas deposits, Ashgabat is a key regional energy player which has the power to really tip the scales. So far, we have seen nothing but confirmation that Berdymukhammedov understands this as well as anyone, and his decisions indicate that the Turkmen strategy will continue to dance and balance in order to extract the maximum concessions from her many suitors. Tomorrow, as hundreds of foreign officials flock to an oil and gas conference in Central Asia, all eyes are on Berdymukhammedov’s next moves. The FT has got the story….