DUSHANBE, April 13, 2011, Asia-Plus — U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Robert O. Blake, Jr. led the U.S. government-interagency delegation to the second U.S. – Tajikistan Annual Bilateral Consultations, April 11 – 12, the U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe reported on April 13.
The delegation included the Department of State”s Directors for the Offices of Central Asian Affairs and International Religious Freedom, the Director for Central Asia in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the Regional Mission Director for the U.S. Agency for International Development. While in Tajikistan, Assistant Secretary Blake met with civil society, business, and political leaders and visited Embassy funded development projects.
On Sunday evening, Ambassador Gross hosted a dinner at his residence for Assistant Secretary Blake and ten Tajik youth leaders to hear their hopes and concerns about their country.
On Monday, Assistant Secretary Blake participated in the Annual Bilateral Consultations with the Government of Tajikistan. During conference, the U.S. and Tajik governments discussed the state of the bilateral relationship, areas of mutual interest, and ways to increase cooperation. Minister of Foreign Affairs Hamrokhon Zarifi led the Tajikistan delegation.
On Tuesday, the delegation met with representatives from the American Chamber of Commerce to discuss ways to improve the investment climate and attract more businesses to the country. Assistant Secretary Blake met with President Emomali Rahmon to express appreciation for Tajikistan’s support of Coalition efforts in Afghanistan, discuss bilateral cooperation, and highlight areas of concern regarding human rights and media freedom. Later, Assistant Secretary Blake and the delegation had lunch with the heads of foreign diplomatic missions and international donor organizations to hear their views on the current situation and exchange ideas for ways to better coordinate assistance efforts. He met with representatives of Tajikistan’s political parties to hear about their experiences participating in the democratic process.
At the end of his trip, Ambassador Ken Gross hosted a discussion at his residence for Assistant Secretary Blake and editors of Tajikistan’s major newspapers to learn about the state of media freedom in Tajikistan. Following the discussion, Assistant Secretary Blake held a press conference to share the highlights of his visit and answer questions about the future of U.S. – Tajik bilateral cooperation.
