Today, President Emomali Rahmon received the Minister of Defense of People’s Republic of China Chang Wanquan who arrived in Tajikistan for an official visit and with the view of taking part in the regular meeting of ministers of defense of the SCO member states.

The meeting addressed the issues related to military and military-technical cooperation between Tajikistan and China.

Head of state Emomali Rahmon called China “a kind neighbor, loyal friend and reliable partner of Tajikistan” and hailed the strengthening and expansion of bilateral and multilateral cooperation, in particular in the area of fight against modern challenges like terrorism and extremism.

Chang Wanquan highly commended the presidency of Tajikistan in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and expressed confidence that this year will be fruitful for the development of multidimensional cooperation with the Organization.

He also stressed that “the People’s Republic of China will further consistently support the strengthening of state independence of Tajikistan, defense capability and its antiterrorist readiness”.

The sides also had a constructive exchange of views on the regional and international situation, including current state and its prospects in Afghanistan and strengthening of protection of longest border of Tajikistan with this neighboring country.