Following the Tajik-Chinese high-level talks in Beijing, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon and Chairman of the PRC Xi Jinping signed a Joint Statement on deepening relations of comprehensive cooperation and strategic partnership in a new era and a Treaty of Eternal Friendship, Good Neighborliness, and Cooperation between the Republic of Tajikistan and the PRC.
The leaders of the two states noted that the main motto of the Treaty is “Friends forever, never enemies.”
The negotiations took place in a narrow and expanded format. The leaders of the two countries discussed strengthening strategic partnership, economic interaction, and regional security issues.
“Community of a shared future”
Chairman of the PRC Xi Jinping, welcoming Emomali Rahmon, emphasized the special nature of the relations between the countries and the personal contribution of the President of Tajikistan to their development.
“My dear friend! Today’s meeting brings me very warm feelings. This year marks the 35th anniversary of Tajikistan’s independence. Under your leadership, Tajikistan has achieved great accomplishments in state-building, which cannot but bring us sincere joy,” said Xi Jinping.
The Chinese leader also noted that awarding Emomali Rahmon the title of honorary professor at Peking University is a symbol of the deep respect of the Chinese people. Despite international turbulence, the PRC reaffirms its course towards strong good neighborliness, he added.
Economy and high technologies
Emomali Rahmon thanked the Chinese side for the warm reception and noted that today China is the leading foreign economic partner of Tajikistan. There are already more than 700 enterprises with Chinese capital operating in the republic.
The parties outlined priority areas of cooperation:
- Industry and energy: special attention was paid to hydropower, solar energy, and the creation of technology parks.
- Transport: the importance of implementing infrastructure projects and building strategic highways was highlighted.
- Digitalization: prospects for the implementation of artificial intelligence and the development of a green economy were discussed.
- Logistics: the launch of the Dushanbe-Xi’an flight was recognized as an important step for business and tourism.
Humanitarian ties and security
The President of Tajikistan expressed interest in increasing quotas for educating youth in Chinese universities in engineering and IT specialties. The President also highly appreciated the work of Confucius Institutes in the republic.
Discussing the regional agenda, the leaders touched upon the situation in Afghanistan and the tensions surrounding Iran. Emomali Rahmon confirmed his commitment to the peaceful resolution of conflicts.
The parties agreed to enhance coordination in combating terrorism, extremism, radicalism, cybercrime, drug trafficking, and other forms of transnational organized crime.
The head of Tajikistan noted the significance of Xi Jinping’s initiative on “Global Governance” through the formation of a fair international system, as well as the Chinese side’s proposal to create an International Mediation Organization.
At the conclusion of the talks, Emomali Rahmon invited Xi Jinping to visit Tajikistan for a reciprocal visit.
What documents were signed?
The negotiations concluded with the signing of a package of 31 cooperation documents. In addition to the joint statement and the Treaty of Eternal Friendship, the parties signed:
– A Cooperation Program between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the PRC for 2026-2027;
– A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Communist Party of China and the People’s Democratic Party of Tajikistan for 2026-2028;
– Exchange Letters between the governments of the Republic of Tajikistan and the PRC on a project for providing technical assistance;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Agency of Innovations and New Digital Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan and the National Development and Reform Commission of the PRC on establishing the Tajik-Chinese Center for Cooperation in the Field of Artificial Intelligence;
– A Memorandum of Understanding on strengthening cooperation based on digital trust in trade between the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the PRC on expanding scientific and technical innovation cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence;
– A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Finance of the PRC in the area of public finance management;
– An Action Plan between the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC on strengthening investment cooperation in the field of green mineral resources for the period 2026-2028;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) and the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Tajikistan on joint implementation of a cooperation plan in the field of human resource development for 2026;
– A Memorandum of Understanding on export cooperation between the Export Agency under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Export Development Bureau under the Ministry of Commerce of the PRC;
– Exchange Letters between the governments of the Republic of Tajikistan and the PRC on the project to conduct a feasibility study on modernizing the Kulma checkpoint infrastructure;
– A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Export Agency under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the China Media Corporation;
– An Agreement between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Tajikistan and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade on creating a Business Council;
– A Roadmap on scientific and technical cooperation in the field of metrology for 2026-2031 between the Agency for Standardization, Metrology, Certification, and Trade Inspection under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan (“Tajikstandard”) and the State Administration for Market Regulation of the PRC;
– Exchange Letters between the governments of the Republic of Tajikistan and the PRC on the project for providing laboratory equipment for quality determination and control in Tajikistan;
– A Cooperation Program between the Executive Service under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Supreme People’s Court of the PRC for 2026-2028;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Committee for Architecture and Construction under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Housing, Urban and Rural Construction of the PRC on strengthening cooperation in the field of architecture and construction;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the PRC on strengthening scientific, technical, and humanitarian exchange;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the PRC on joint promotion of the creation of the Tajik-Chinese Agricultural Scientific and Technical Innovation Park;
– A Cooperation Program between the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the PRC for 2026-2029;
– A Protocol of Intent between the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the PRC;
– A Protocol between the Food Security Committee under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the General Administration of Customs of the PRC on inspection, quarantine requirements for the import and export of chicken meat between Tajikistan and China;
– A Protocol between the Food Security Committee under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the General Administration of Customs of the PRC on phytosanitary requirements regarding the export of fresh fruits (apricots and plums) from the Republic of Tajikistan to the PRC;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Antimonopoly Service under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the State Administration for Market Regulation of the PRC;
– A Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation between the Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the China Media Corporation;
– A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Committee for Tourism Development under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan and the China Media Corporation;
– A Memorandum of Cooperation between the National Information Agency of Tajikistan “Khovar” and the Chinese News Agency “Xinhua”;
– A Memorandum of Understanding between the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies on the creation of a Center for the Study of China’s Modernization;
– An Agreement between the National University of Tajikistan, the International Chinese Language Studies Foundation, and Xinjiang Normal University on the joint development of the Confucius Institute.
