Tajikistan reportedly intends to ratify its agreement with Uzbekistan on visa-free travel next week. The deal enables citizens of each country to visit the other for up to 30 days without obtaining a visa.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon sent the agreement, which was signed on March 9 during Uzbek president’s state visit to Tajikistan, for ratification to the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament) on March 14, according to the Tajik president’s official website.
An official source at the Majlisi Namoyandagon says the agreement is expected to be ratified next week.
“The Majlisi Namoyandagon Board will consider the agreement on the following Friday and it will be ratified at the Majlisi Namoyandagon session next week,” the source added.
The Tajik Foreign Minister had earlier noted that that now all Tajik nationals need foreign passport (passport for international travels) to travel to Uzbekistan.
Before that, residents of districts bordering Uzbekistan could use the Tajik internal passport to travel to Uzbekistan and they could stay in Uzbekistan for up to five days without visa.
Recall, Tashkent introduced visas for Tajik citizens intending to visit Uzbekistan in 2001, creating major complications for ethnic Tajiks living on the Uzbek side and ethnic Uzbeks on the Tajik side, many of whom have relatives or other connections in the other country.
The agreements signed on March 9 also included a deal on the delimitation of parts of the Tajik-Uzbek border.
