DUSHANBE, May 14, 2011, Asia-Plus -- President Emomali Rahmon received visiting CIS Interstate Fund for Humanitarian Cooperation (IFHC) CEO Armen Smbtyan on May 13.

According to the presidential press service, the two discussed a broad range of issues related humanitarian cooperation within the CIS area.

Rahmon underlined an important role of humanitarian cooperation for development of sectors like science, education, culture and folk handicraft.  He stressed that humanitarian cooperation promoted strengthening of ties between the CIS nations and peoples and noted that Tajikistan attached significant importance to expansion of humanitarian cooperation with the CIS nations.

Mr. Smbtyan, for his part, noted that Tajikistan was an active member of humanitarian cooperation within the CIS area and highly appraised a role of Tajik culture in strengthening and expansion of humanitarian ties, the source said.

Many CIS-level events will take part in Tajikistan this year.  Among them is an international conference on the Pamir-Chakaltay Astrophysical Center that is scheduled to take place in Dushanbe in September this year.