DUSHANBE, August 6, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- A broad range of issues related to bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Afghanistan were discussed at a meeting of Tajik President Emomali Rahmon with his Afghan counterpart, President Hamid Karzai, in Tehran yesterday on sidelines of a tripartite summit of leaders of Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Iran, according to the Tajik presidential press service.

The sides considered security and border control problems vital issues for cooperation between the two countries.

The two leaders expressed satisfaction with increasing level of trade and economic cooperation between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.  Over the past six years, the trade and economic cooperation between the two countries has increased almost twenty times.

Construction of bridges, highways and railway links connecting the countries as well as construction of hydropower plants and power transmission lines and increase in transit opportunities of the two countries for shipping goods from Europe to Central Asia’s countries were also among major topics of the meeting.

Hamid Karzai appreciated Tajikistan’s support for training of military and medical personnel for Afghanistan and noted that more than 300 Afghan nationals have taken preliminary courses at Tajik medical educational institutions in the first half-year of 2010 alone.

For his part, President Rahmon noted that up to 100 nationals of the neighboring country could take training courses at Tajik colleges every year.