DUSHANBE (President of Tajikistan press service) — The Head of State Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon held bilateral talks in an expanded format. This is the first Tokayev’s official visit to Tajikistan as President and his first official trip abroad in the context of a pandemic.

The Kazakh head of state noted the existence of an important legal framework between the two countries, which includes more than 80 agreements, among which the Strategic Partnership Agreement, signed in 2015, occupies a special place.

After a meeting in a narrow format, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Emomali Rahmon continued negotiations with the participation of members of the official delegations of the two countries.

The parties paid priority attention to strengthening trade and economic cooperation, including increasing mutual trade, attracting investments, developing industrial cooperation, agriculture, and transit transport potential. Kazakhstan ranks second in the total volume of Tajikistan’s foreign trade turnover. They also discussed interaction in the water-energy, military-technical and cultural-humanitarian spheres.

Following the talks, in the presence of the Heads of State, members of the official delegations signed the following documents:

• Agreement between the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Tajikistan on cooperation in the fight against tuberculosis;
• The program of cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Tajikistan for 2021-2023;
• Memorandum of Understanding on cultural cooperation between the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Tajikistan;
• Framework memorandum between the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan on cooperation in the field of industry;
• Memorandum of Understanding between the Aerospace Committee of the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Communication Service under the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan;
• Memorandum between the Ministry of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Tajikistan on cooperation on joint implementation of a project to create a commodity distribution system.