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Putin, Tajik president discuss Asian security, threats coming from Afghanistan

The parties had agreed to continue boosting defense cooperation and cooperation in the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking at the bilateral level and within the CSTO

MOSCOW, April 17. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Tajik counterpart Emomali Rahmon have discussed security issues Central Asia is facing, including threats coming from Afghanistan, as Putin himself said at a press conference following Wednesday’s talks.

"We thoroughly discussed the security situation in Central Asia, including threats and challenges coming from Afghanistan," Putin said.

Rahmon, in turn, noted that "Tajikistan is a buffer zone preventing the spread of security threats coming from that region." He added that Dushanbe called for resolving Afghanistan’s problems peacefully. "Tajikistan is interested in a stable and prospering Afghanistan," the Tajik leader emphasized.

Putin said that the parties had agreed to continue boosting defense cooperation and cooperation in the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking at the bilateral level and within the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). According to Putin, both parties highlighted the role of Russia’s 201st military base in maintaining peace and stability in Central Asia.

When speaking about global issues, Putin pointed out that Russia and Tajikistan had the same or similar views on key regional and global security problems. "Russia and Tajikistan seek to coordinate their activities through integration processes, particularly within the CIS [the Commonwealth of Independent States], the SCO [the Shanghai Cooperation Organization] and the CSTO," the Russian leader noted, welcoming Dushanbe’s determination to boost ties with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) not only in the areas of economy, trade and investment but also in other fields.

Putin added that Moscow supported Dushanbe’s chairmanship of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA). "We will be pleased to participate in the CICA summit scheduled to be held in Dushanbe in June," the Russian president said.

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Vladimir Putin Tajikistan CSTO

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