Azerbaijan, Baku, October 24 / Trend news V. Zhavoronkova /
None of the countries interested in Tajikistan, will assist Dushanbe as much as Russia, Russian expert on Central Asia, Leonid Gusev, said.
"Nobody will assist Tajikistan as much as Russia, despite interest of other countries in this region, " Senior Fellow at the Institute of International Studies of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Moscow State Institute of the International Relations, Gusev, told Trend via e-mail.
Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov paid an official visit to Russia on October 22. Rakhmonov discussed several issues of bilateral relations with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. These issues included Russian 201-st base in Tajikistan, energy issues, the status of Russian language in Tajikistan.
According to the information, the Presidents agreed on all disputable issues.
"As to an implication of the negotiations, like many other experts I think that all these issues, including energy and the status of the Russian language, etc., are greatly inflated by Dushanbe, to argue about something with Moscow", Gusev said.
He said that Rakhmonov can not break ties with Russia. One of these reasons is assistance rendered to Tajikistan by Moscow. Gusev said that for example, no one will allow such a great number of Tajik workers to work in Moscow.
Russia intends to improve migration rules for Tajik citizens. Gusev said that the matter is that a large number of Tajik citizens work in Moscow. Medvedev said that it is necessary to create comfortable conditions for work and at the same time, transparent and effective rules to register migrants.
Moreover, the parties agreed that Tajikistan will not take the fee for 201 base from Russia. Although, according to expert, during the talk in the corridors they spoke about $300 million per year.
But the fee will not be taken till 2014.
"It is not clear what will happen then," Gusev said.
Russia and Tajikistan agreed on a "military-technical cooperation". Gusev said that supply of arms and ammunition is meant.
Medvedev expressed his intention to solve the problems with Tajik relations.
Moreover, Russian leader thinks that it necessary to boost cooperation with Tajikistan in oil, gas sector and hydroelectric power, expert said.
"Telling the truth, Russia is not ready to boost completion of Rogun hydroelectric power station yet. Tajikistan refuses to give it a control package to manage future hydro electric power station", Gusev said.
He said that the Russian side has not waited for paying off the debt for electric power generated by Sangtuda hydroelectric power station, launched by both presidents last July.
Do you have any feedback? Contact our journalist at agency@trend.az
