Landlocked Tajikistan proposes trade corridor to access Gwadar

Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon on Wednesday expressed his country’s interest to access Pakistan’s Gwadar and Karachi seaports as the shortest trade route for the landlocked Central Asian state to connect with the region. The Tajik president proposed establishment of a trade corridor passing through Pakistan, as he addressed at a joint press stakeout with Prime Minister Imran Khan here at the PM House. The two leaders, who earlier held wide-ranging discussions on diverse areas of cooperation, expressed willingness to further strengthen the bilateral multifaceted ties. President Emomali Rahmon stressed full-fledged cooperation between Tajikistan and Pakistan to manage energy and water resources and also tapping the potential of Central Asia-South Asia (CASA-1000) power project. He termed Pakistan a ‘reliable and trustworthy partner’ of Tajikistan at the international stage, where the two countries have similarity of agenda to pursue a mutually beneficial cooperation. He mentioned that his talks with Imran Khan focused on inter-governmental cooperation in fields of economy, parliaments, energy, agriculture, healthcare and Covid-19 situation. Prime Minister Imran Khan welcomed President Emomali Rahmon and mentioned the positive discussions held with him in areas of trade, defence production, climate change and common challenges including post-troops withdrawal scenario in Afghanistan. He expressed confidence that the agreements and MoUs signed during the visit of Tajik president would lead to stronger relationship between the two countries. Imran Khan said Pakistan’s strategic location offered the neighbouring countries a great opportunity for trade, however he added that such arrangement with India was not possible till the latter reversed the unilateral act of August 5 of revoking the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. “It would be a betrayal with Kashmiris [on behalf of Pakistan],” he said, adding that unless India took the first step to resolve the situation, the “matter of trade would remain a stalemate”. Prime Minister Imran Khan said in the realm of ‘common challenge’ faced by Pakistan and Tajikistan, both sides agreed that peace in Afghanistan is a priority. “If the US troops withdrawal from Afghanistan is similar to what Russia did in 1989, we both are concerned about the security to our trade and connectivity,” he said. He said Pakistan and Tajikistan in their delegation-level talks held unanimity of views that a consensus political government in Afghanistan was vital for peace of the region. President Emomali said in the rapidly changing global situation, “Tajikistan and Pakistan needed strong cooperation in anti-terrorism, drug trafficking and organized crimes”. Peace in Afghanistan, he said, is of “dire importance” for the immediate neighbours such as Tajikistan and Pakistan. Both the leaders expressed concern over the rising trend of Islamophobia in the world and called for a joint action by Muslim countries and organizations including Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Imran Khan welcomed Tajikistan for declaring 2025 as ‘Year of Preservation of Glaciers’, saying “Pakistan will fully back the initiative’ as the country faced fast melting of its glaciers – the main resource of clean water. The two countries entered into 12 accords for cooperation in diverse fields including trade, anti-corruption, infrastructure, education and culture, including the sale of Pakistan-manufactured arms to the Central Asian country. President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon and Prime Minister Imran Khan witnessed the signing ceremony as the representatives from two sides signed the agreements and the memoranda of understanding. The agreements and MoU signed for cooperation in different areas include: agreement on cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Tajikistan and Chamber of Commerce & Industry Quetta Balochistan; agreement on cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce & Industry of Pakistan; MoU between Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Republic of Tajikistan; academic cooperation Agreement between Tajik Technical University named after academician MS Osimi and Indus University of Pakistan; MOU between Tajik Institute of Languages, Dushanbe Tajikistan and National University of Modern Languages (NUML) Pakistan; MoU between Technological University of Tajikistan and COMSATS University Islamabad; MoU between Agency for State Financial Control & Struggle against Corruption of the Republic of Tajikistan and National Accountability Bureau, Pakistan; agreement between governments of Tajikistan and Pakistan for cooperation in the field of Prevention & Liquidation of Emergency Situations; agreement between the two governments in the field of Art and Culture; Cooperation Programme between Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Tajikistan; agreement on International Road Transport; Joint Declaration on Next Steps in Building Strategic Partnership for Regional Solidarity and Integration.