Chinese, Tajik presidents discuss bilateral cooperation
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Chinese President Hu Jintao met with Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon in Tashkent Thursday, calling for further advancing bilateral cooperation between the two good neighbors.
Hu and Rakhmon exchanged views on bilateral relations and other issues of common concern at the sidelines of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) scheduled for Friday.
Hu thanked Rakhmon for sending him a letter of condolence after the devastating earthquake in northwest China's Qinghai Province in April. He also expressed appreciation to Rakhmon and the government of Tajikistan for their support to China's hosting of the ongoing Shanghai Expo.
Rakhmon said as he met with Hu in Russia last year, they set the orientation and tasks for future development of bilateral links. Now they are able to review the result of implementing such consensus at this meeting, he said.
Rakhmon noted that the two countries completed the demarcation of their border lines earlier this month as their foreign ministries signed a relevant agreement in Beijing.
Leaders of the two countries have maintained frequent contact since China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties in 1992.
Rakhmon has visited China many times, with the latest one in 2008. During his visit to Beijing in 2007, Rakhmon and Hu signed a treaty on forging a good-neighborly, friendly and cooperative relationship between the two countries.
Hu paid a state visit to Tajikistan immediately after the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008.
The exchange of visits by the heads of state and other leaders have helped advance bilateral ties to a new stage. China and Tajikistan have continuously improved mutual trust, expanded mutually beneficial cooperation and carried out close cooperation within the multilateral frameworks of the United Nations and the SCO.
The two countries have carried out close cooperation in the areas of trade, economy, transport, science, technology, education and culture.
Rakhmon said over that the past year, bilateral cooperation in other areas also achieved rich results. With the assistance of China, Tajikistan has completed a number of major infrastructure projects, including bridges and an electricity transmission line connecting the power grids in northern and southern parts of the country.
Tajikistan has stood fast on the one-China policy and given firm support to China on the Taiwan issue, issues related to Tibet and the crackdown on the terrorist forces such as "Eastern Turkistan."
On Friday, Hu and Rakhmon will join other leaders of SCO members for the SCO summit, where the leaders will discuss strategies for safeguarding security and stability in the region and strengthening pragmatic cooperation among member states.
Founded in 2001, the SCO consists of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Mongolia, India, Pakistan and Iran are observers of the organization.
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