DUSHANBE, July 12, 2013, Asia-Plus – The fate of a joint Persian-language TV project is still unclear.
Speaking at a news conference in Dushanbe, the TV and Radio-broadcasting Committee head Asadullo Rahmonov noted on July 12 that he hopes the issue will be solved in the near future. “I do not know whether the Iranian side has applied to the Customs Committee of Tajikistan regarding exemption of the equipment meant for the project from customs duties or not,” Rahmonov noted.
The equipment has been held at the depot of the Customs Service under the Government of Tajikistan in Dushanbe for already more than nine months.
Since the Iranian side does not have appropriate documents confirming that the equipment is exempted from customs duties, Tajik customs officials reportedly demand that the supplier pay a US$400,000 customs duty.
Meanwhile, Iran intends to bring back the equipment worth €2 million. An official source at the Iranian Embassy in Dushanbe told Asia-Plus in late May that Tajik Foreign Ministry has promised them to solve the issue. “However, solution to this issue is being delayed,” said the source. “If the issue is not solved and they will obligate us to pay customs duty, all the equipment will be brought back to Iran.”
According to the Iranian side, the equipment should be exempted from customs duties in line with a government-to-government agreement between the two countries.
We will recall that Tajik customs officials said in September 2012 that no duties are required if the gear is for use by the Iranian Embassy. Otherwise, they said customs duties must be paid by Iran.
In 2010, implementation of the Persian-language TV station project was postponed due to some reservations expressed by Afghan officials. Afghanistan suggested that the common television network should broadcast programs in Pashto as well.
Tajikistan, Iran and Afghanistan leaders met in Dushanbe in 2006 and agreed to establish a joint television channel. At a two-day ministerial meeting that took place in Dushanbe on March 24-25, 2008, the foreign ministers of Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Iran agreed to establish a new Dushanbe-based Persian-language television channel to broadcast in each country. The programs aired by the joint station are expected to focus mainly on cultural issues.
In August 2008, the heads of state of Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Iran signed appropriate documents on the establishment of the join TV channel in Dushanbe on sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. The headquarters of the television channel would be based in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe.
