Secretary General of the Council of Europe Mr. Thorbjorn Jagland met today with the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mr. Emomali Rahmon to discuss co-operation between the Council of Europe and Tajikistan.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe Mr. Thorbjorn Jagland met today with the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Mr. Emomali Rahmon to discuss

co-operation between the Council of Europe and Tajikistan in a number of areas related to the promotion of democracy and the respect for human rights and the rule of law. The Secretary General and the President agreed on continued dialogue in the framework of the Council of Europe policy on relations with countries in Europe's neighborhood. The dialogue, including at parliamentary level, will deal with a number of human rights issues - notably the protection of national minorities, but also the building of democratic institutions in Tajikistan and countering threats such as trafficking in human beings, terrorism and cybercrime. In this context, the two interlocutors also discussed prospects for Tajikistan's accession to relevant Council of Europe Conventions, such as the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.

The Council of Europe is ready to provide advice and expertise on issues related to prison reform and prison development in Tajikistan.

The discussion also focused on the ongoing co-operation between the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the Venice Commission) and relevant authorities in Tajikistan. In this context the President of Tajikistan also met the President of the Venice Commission Mr. Gianni Buquicchio.

As a direct result of talks on prospects for strengthened co-operation in the fields of education, culture and heritage, youth and sport during his visit, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan signed, subject to ratification, the 1997 Council of Europe Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in Europe which commits each of its 50 parties to providing fair and transparent recognition of qualifications from other countries