TEHRAN – Tajikistan’s Foreign Minister, Sirodjidin Mukhriddin, held separate talks on Saturday with President Hassan Rouhani and his Iranian counterpart Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Rouhani said, “We have to try hard to develop Tehran-Dushanbe relations in different fields to the benefit of both nations’ interests”.

Noting that the two countries enjoy common cultural, historical, and linguistic features, Rouhani said, “The Islamic Republic of Iran has always favored stability, full security and development of Tajikistan.” 

The president added, “We are ready to provide Tajikistan with more technical-engineering services and transfer experiences in implementing projects.”

According to the president’s official website, Rouhani said, “It is an honor for Iranian companies and private sector to provide our friendly countries with the best of activities and services.” 

The president also pointed to the importance of Chabahar Port for transit of goods, saying, “Iran can be the best and safest transit route for Tajikistan’s goods”.

Chabahar Port in southern Iran is being developed by India. 

Terrorists leaving Iraq and Afghanistan may become active in Central Asia 

Rouhani also pointed to the menace of terrorism and challenges of foreign intervention in the region, saying today the region is in a special condition.

“With terrorists leaving Iraq and Syria, there are concerns that they may become active in the Central Asia and Caucasus, therefore Iran and Tajikistan can increase cooperation in fighting terrorism”.

‘Increasing ties with Iran very important for Tajikistan’

For his part, Mukhriddin said, “Development of relations between Tehran and Dushanbe is very important for us”.

Underlining that Iran’s policy of combatting terrorism and extremism has had effective impacts, he said, “We believe that the existence of terrorist groups is a very serious headache for regional nations and we need to cooperate in fighting terrorism”.

He referred to the Tajik president’s official invitation to Rouhani, expressing hope that Iran can attend the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), which will be held in Dushanbe in the near future.

Earlier the day, Mukhriddin met with Foreign Minister Zarif. In their meeting, the two chief diplomats touched upon the political and strategic significance of relations between the two friendly and brotherly countries, according to the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s website.

They also stressed the need to boost mutual cooperation in bilateral, regional and international domains.

High on the agenda of the talks were the enhancement of political, parliamentary and economic relations as well as cooperation between friendship groups of both countries.

They also conferred on promotion of cooperation in water management, energy and transport, holding political and consular consultations, expansion of bilateral and international cultural cooperation, especially within the UNESCO, and countering extremism and terrorism.

SP/PA