Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Russian President Vladimir Putin have vowed to boost economic, educational and security cooperation between their countries.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon was on a two-day official visit ton Moscow on April 16-17. Ahead of the talks on April 17 with Putin, Rahmon said yesterday at a meeting with the members of the Tajik community in Moscow that regulation of labor migration and protection of rights and interests of Tajik citizens in Russia will top the agenda of his meetings with the Russian leadership.
Recall, during a meeting with Vyacheslav Volodin, Speaker of the State Duma (Russia’s lower house of parliament), Emomali Rahmon said on April 16 that they will sing an agreement on an organized recruitment of labor migrants from Tajikistan.
Yesterday, Emomali Rahmon held talks at the Kremlin with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Following the talks, the Kremlin press service released a statement saying Vladimir Putin and Emomali Rahmon discussed key issues of bilateral relations, efforts for the further development of mutually beneficial cooperation in the political, trade, economic, cultural, humanitarian and other fields, and current regional problems. The two leaders reportedly agreed to continue joint efforts to fight against terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, and the illegal trade in weapons.
Following the talks, Vladimir Putin and Emomali Rahmon signed a Joint Statement. In addition, the heads of state attended a ceremony to exchange documents signed during the visit.
The documents deal, in particular, with building and equipping Russian-language general education schools in several cities in Tajikistan, the employment of citizens of Tajikistan in Russia, cooperation in tourism and petroleum product deliveries to Tajikistan, as well as biological safety, countering drug trafficking and simplifying customs procedures. Documents were also signed on cooperation between the ministries of culture, academies of sciences and Olympic committees of Russia and Tajikistan.
The presidents also made statements for the press..
President Putin, in particular, said, “There is no need to describe our relationship, as it is a truly allied relationship, in the full sense of the word, and a strategic partnership. We have a well-established political dialogue, and we cooperate in the military field, both within the CSTO and on a bilateral basis. Economic ties are also growing between us.”
President Rahmon, for his part, said, “Russia is a key strategic partner and ally of Tajikistan and has a leading place in Tajikistan’s trade and economic relations. Our cooperation in the cultural and humanitarian spheres is on the rise, and security cooperation is being strengthened.”
