DUSHANBE, October 26, 2010, Asia-Plus — Tajikistan and Afghanistan have signed six cooperation documents in Kabul.
According to Tajik presidential press service, President Emomali Rahmon and his Afghan counterpart, President Hamid Karzai, yesterday held bilateral talks that were followed by negotiations in an enlarged format with participation of official delegations of the two countries yesterday.
In the course of the talks, the sides noted that trade between Tajikistan and Afghanistan was developing from year to year. Bilateral economic cooperation, in particular expansion of trade and productive ties through development of cross-border markets and free economic zones, was a major topic of the talks.
The two leaders expressed interest in further expansion of bilateral mutually beneficial energy and transport cooperation between their countries as well as quadrilateral cooperation between Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Russia.
Rahmon and Karzai charged relevant bodies of their governments to work out agreements on a transit trade and encourage and protection of investment and avoidance of double taxation.
The sides noted that signing of agreements on cooperation in the fields of education and health and restoration of direct ties between universities and other educational facilities of the two countries would benefit both sides.
During the meeting it was noted that more than 100 students, border officers, drug police officers, customs officers and 300 health workers from Afghanistan have taken training courses in Tajikistan over the first six months of this year.
“Tajik Medical College is ready to accept up to 100 Afghan students per year on preferential terms,” President Rahmon noted.
Tajik leader expressed confidence that the current visit would give a new impulse to further development of friendly relations between the two countries.
Rahmon and Karzai signed a joint declaration and relevant bodies of the governments of Tajikistan and Afghanistan signed five cooperation documents on October 25.
We will recall that President Emomali Rahmon arrived in Kabul for a two-day official visit on October 25. Foreign Minister Hamrokhon Zarifi, State Adviser to the President for International Issues Erkin Rahmatulloyev, Minister of Economic Development and Trade Farrukh Hamraliyev, Minister of Energy and Industries Gul Sherali, Minister of Transport and Communications Olimjon Boboyev, State Committee for Investment and State-owned Property Management Chairman Davlatali Saidov and some other officials are accompanying Rahmon on his visit to Afghanistan.
Rahmon is also expected to hold talks Yunus Qanuni, Speaker of the Wolesi Jirga (Afghanistan’s lower house of parliament), and Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani, the head of the Afghan Peace Council, the source said.
