Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon agreed for a bilateral cooperation of the two nations in a meeting in Sochi last August 18.

In the meeting, Medvedev noted about the natural disasters that both countries had suffered in the recent year. Furthermore, he pointed about how a country responds to such incidences. In conclusion, he proposed to consider mutual assistance and support concerning the issues between concerned nations.

Rakhmon accepted the meeting as an opportunity to discuss current matters and future plans. He stressed that the Russian and Tajikistan relationship continues free of any unresolved problems. The president added that he thinks it is how matters, between strategic partners and allies, should be. Moreover, he expressed satisfaction with the ongoing process of bilateral relations and the steady growth in trades between the two countries.

Tajikistan, mountainous country in Central Asia, suffered from an earthquake with the magnitude of 5.3 last January. The calamity devastated the country resulting in thousands injured and damaged properties.  Relatively, Russia, considered the biggest country by landmass and one of the leading nations, is currently enduring wildfires raging across the central region of the country due to heat waves started since July. Local media reported about 50 casualties and 3,500 destroyed homes.

Considering, Medvedev said, “On these issues, I believe it makes sense to discuss measures for joint support and assistance.”

The bilateral meeting of the two presidents happened as part of a summit meeting. In the summit, couched in the Black Sea resort in Sochi, Russia, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan leaders had their second quadripartite meeting, with the first held on July 30, 2009 in Dushanbe. Discussions in the summit focused on regional security, terrorism, and drug traffic countering. Consecutively, the Russian president will make another bilateral meeting with the other two remaining leaders after concluding the first one.