DUSHANBE, November 12, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Tajikistan is currently conducting negotiations with Uzbekistan on extending the term of payment of its debt, Minister of Finance Safarali Najmiddinov said in an interview with Asia-Plus.

According to him, Tajikistan now owes 32 million U.S. dollars to Uzbekistan.  “In 1997, our debt to Uzbekistan amounted to 192 million U.S. dollars and we have paid 160 million U.S. dollars over the past 17 years,” said the minister, “Under the agreement signed between the governments of the two countries, Tajikistan every year repays 10 million - 11 million U.S. dollars of its debt to Uzbekistan”

He added that 250 million U.S. dollars would be allocated from the national budget next year for the country’s state debt servicing.

“Tajikistan’s external debt now amounts to some 1.8 billion U.S. dollars (32 percent of GDP),” said Najmiddinov, “We expect the external debt to reach not more than 2 billion U.S. dollars in 2013, which will be not more than 36 percent of GDP.”