Reply #6: It shouldn't go unsaid that the governments of Iraq and Afghanistan

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. . . are pretty far along in normalizing relations with Iran, both already with extensive economic and security agreements forged through direct talks between their leaders.


___Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Emomali Rahmon, and Hamid Karzai are to attend the meeting coincided with the Navrouz festival - Persian speakers' ancient ceremony, Faramarz Tamanna said in an interview with the Mehr News Agency, according to Tehran Times.

The previous tripartite meeting of the presidents of Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Iran was held in Dushanbe on August 28, 2008. In the course of the talks, Emomali Rahmon, Hamid Karzai, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad discussed a number of projects for tripartite and regional cooperation. The heads of state first met in narrow, and then an enlarged meeting with participation of the delegations of the three countries was held. During the meeting, it was noted that implementation of projects for construction of tunnels, bridges, Tajikistan-Afghanistan-Iran highway, and a railway link connecting Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Iran as well as power grids from Tajikistan to Iran and Pakistan via Afghanistan would boost trade, increase exports and ease transit costs in the region, as well as expand passenger traffic, and raise wellbeing of the population of the region. The sides also noted that implementation of those project would support reconstruction of Afghanistan's economy and reestablishment of peace and stability there. The negotiations ended with signing of two documents on trilateral cooperation and one document on bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Iran: a memorandum on trilateral cooperation in the field of energy; a joint statement of Emomali Rahmon, Hamid Karzai and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the results of the meeting; and a memorandum on completion of construction works at the Istiqlol Tunnel in Tajikistan.

http://news-en.trend.az/cis/tajikistan/1434811.html