DUSHANBE, June 24, 2011, Asia-Plus -- The OSCE Office in Tajikistan''s Khujand Field Office, the Sughd regional authorities and the Civil Society Centre held a roundtable meeting on June 21, 2011 to mark 14th anniversary of the Peace Agreement in Tajikistan.

The Peace Agreement, signed 27 June 1997, ended Tajikistan''s five-year civil war.

According to the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, representatives of the Sughd regional administration, political parties and non-governmental organizations as well as journalists, discussed the history of the negotiation and implementation of the Peace Agreement, and the role of external actors, including the OSCE, that assisted in the process.

Kelsey Harris-Smith, the Head of the OSCE Khujand Field Office, said that although the northern parts of the country did not see any major military operations during Tajikistan''s five-year long civil war, it still suffered from the conflict.

“Within its comprehensive approach to security, the OSCE made significant contributions to the Tajik peace process and especially to post-conflict rehabilitation of the country,” Harris-Smith said.

“Peace and reconciliation were prerequisites for the development of an independent Tajik civil society, and the OSCE Office in Tajikistan and its field offices continue to support the country’s political, economic, environmental and human rights development.”