DUSHANBE, October 5, 2011, 2011, Asia-Plus  -- Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych today congratulated Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on his 59th birthday, the Tajik presidential press service reports.

In his message of congratulations, Mr. Yanukovych, in particular, pointed out “an intensive development of Ukrainian-Tajik interaction and partnership.”  He expressed hope that that positive dynamic would continue in the future as well.

Ukrainian leader wished health and wellbeing to President Rahmon and peace and prosperity to the people of Tajikistan.

We will recall that that Ramon and Yanukovych met in Dushanbe in early September on the sidelines of a CIS summit.  State and prospects of further expansion of bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Ukraine were a major topic of the meeting.

In the course of the talks, Tajik leader noted that over the first six months of this year, a two-way trade between Tajikistan and Ukraine has amounted to 101 million U.S. dollars, which was 43 percent more than in the same period last year.

President Yanukovych highly appraised current progress in economic development reached by Tajikistan in recent years.  “Despite difficulties and instability of the first years of independence and negative impact of the global financial and economic crisis, we are becoming witnesses of stable growth and development of your country,” Ukrainian leader stated.

The sides expressed satisfaction with current level of military-technical and cultural cooperation between their countries and outlined sectors like energy, metallurgy and engineering industry as areas of which could drive bilateral trade between their countries.

Rahmon and Yanukovych noted that there was still considerable room for expansion of economic ties between Tajikistan and Ukraine.  The presidents expressed confidence that the forthcoming President Rahmon’s official visit to Ukraine would give a new impulse to further expansion of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.