DUSHANBE, January 8, Asia-Plus - Diplomatic relations between Tajikistan and Kazakhstan were established on January 7, 1993, according to the Tajik MFA.  

Legal foundation of Tajik-Kazakh relations consists of 51 agreements singed between the two countries from 1993 to 2002.  A treaty on the principles of relations between Tajikistan was signed on January 12, 1993.  The other important document, a declaration on further expansion of relations, was signed in Dushanbe in June 200, during the Central Asian leaders’ summit in Dushanbe.   

An official visit of Tajik President Emomali Rahmonov to Kazakhstan in May last year became an important event in bilateral relationship between Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, the MFA source said.  The presidents of the two countries on May 4 concluded six new agreements on bilateral cooperation.  The agreements included expanded measures for bilateral cooperation in the agriculture, energy, and industrial sectors, as well as on the protection of migrant labor.

According to a reliable source, Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev is scheduled to pay a visit to Tajikistan this year.  Tajik officials hope that this visit will give a new impulse to further development of economic cooperation between the two countries.  

Although increasing annually on average by 30 percent, bilateral trade remains limited, totaling just $167.5 million in 2005.  Kazakh investment in Tajikistan is currently estimated at $100 million.