Tajik parliament speaker: Russia remains strategic partner of Tajikistan
DUSHANBE. Oct 7 (Interfax) - Tajikistan does not change its strategic partners in spite of global geopolitical transformations and remains a committed ally of Russia, Tajik parliament lower house speaker Shukurjon Zuhurov said at a meeting with State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin on Monday.
Naryshkin arrived in Dushanbe on Sunday night to pay an official visit.
"Despite the pressure from external forces, numerous geopolitical transformations in the world and the region, and loads of provocative reports published by the foreign media, Tajikistan, in contrast with some other states, does not change its strategic objectives and remains a loyal ally of Russia," Tajik parliament press secretary Muhammadato Sultonov quoted Zuhurov as saying.
The speaker of the Tajik parliament's lower house told his Russian colleague about the October 1 ratification of two Russian-Tajik agreements concerning the terms of stay of Tajik citizens on Russian territory, which extended the period assigned for their registration from seven to 15 days, and the status of the Russian military base in Tajikistan, which extended the period of the base's deployment until 2042, Sultonov said.
"The agitated response of biased media outlets to these agreements shows that certain forces are discontent with this cooperation, especially as the CSTO Sochi summit has decided to assist Tajikistan in the reinforcement of the Tajik-Afghan section of the state border," Zuhurov said.
The summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) held in Sochi on September 23, 2013, expressed support to Tajikistan in view of the pullout of the U.S.-led NATO force from Afghanistan in 2014. Tajikistan has the longest border with Afghanistan of all CIS member states, 1,344 kilometers. The CSTO uniting Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan pledged assistance to Tajik border guards.