The deal was signed by Kyrgyzstan's President Sadyr Japarov, Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon, and Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in the Tajik city of Khujand on Monday, following a trilateral summit.
The trilateral deal, as well as an agreement between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan on the state border, will “serve to ensure the goals of stability and sustainable development, increasing the international authority of the entire region,” an Uzbek presidency statement said.
In a Friday statement, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei hailed the agreement as a "significant step towards mutual respect for territorial integrity and national sovereignty" of the three Central Asian countries.
The deal, he continued, would also build trust and consolidate peace and stability in Central Asia.
The spokesperson reiterated that Iran’s principled stance is to support efforts and initiatives by the countries in the Central Asia region aimed at solving border disputes through peaceful means and improving intra-regional convergence.
Baghaei expressed hope that the trilateral pact would guarantee sustainable peace and stability in the region, prepare the ground for further understanding and cooperation in various fields, and develop economic cooperation among the regional countries.
Earlier in March, the Kyrgyz and Tajik presidents signed a long-sought agreement on the state border during a meeting in Bishkek.
For over 30 years, the two countries had been unable to finalize the border, which had led to sporadic armed conflicts. The inking of the deal brought the reopening of road, rail and air links between the two countries.
Later, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan restored flight connections that had been suspended in May 2021 following the armed conflict at the border. After four years, the first aircraft from Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, landed in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.
