Tajikistan refutes claims about country's accession to EAEU in near future

Head of the Tajik Foreign Ministry’s Information and Press Department Shokhin Samadi has said that Tajikistan is not considering the country's possible accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

He made the remarks in response to the comments of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who expressed hope that Tajikistan in the near future "will determine for itself the benefits of joining the EAEU,” Kommersant reports.

The Tajik foreign ministry representative clarified that the sides did not discuss the integration of Tajikistan into the union at a meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, or at the talks with Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin, which took place on June 6.

"The issue of Tajikistan joining the EAEU is not on the agenda. During the meetings in Dushanbe, the focus was solely on issues of intensifying trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation, regional security, and the interaction between the two countries within international organisations," Samadi said.

Tajikistan's accession to the EAEU, which includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, has been discussed since 2015.

During his visit to Dushanbe on June 6, Sergei Lavrov expressed hope that Tajikistan's authorities "will soon determine for themselves the benefits of joining the Eurasian Economic Union”.

In another speech, the minister cited statistics: according to the Eurasian Development Bank, the countries of the union accounted for 44 per cent of Tajikistan's foreign trade last year.