DUSHANBE, December 2, 2014, Asia-Plus -- The 5th Annual Meeting of Deputy Foreign Ministers of Central Asian countries, convened by the United Nations Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA), took place in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan on November 28.

Tajikistan was represented at the meeting by Deputy Foreign Minister Nizomiddin Zohidi.

According to UNRCCA, the meeting focused on developments and trends related to peace and security in Central Asia, including in a context of post 2014 Afghanistan.  Participants exchanged views on existing and emerging threats to security in the region and on ways to effectively respond to them, with UN support.  They reportedly also discussed ways of strengthening regional cooperation, including through UNRCCA initiatives, aimed at assisting the countries of Central Asia to address these challenges.

Present as special guests were also Nicholas Haysom, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of UNAMA, Jens Toyberg-Frandzen, UN Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs, and Saroj Kumar Jha, World Bank Regional Director for Central Asia.

In the course of the meeting, participants reviewed UNRCCA past activities and discussed main priorities of the Center in 2015, as well as the new Program of Action of the Regional Center for the period 2015-17.

The participants expressed support for the efforts of the UN Regional Centre to create conditions conducive for achieving durable solutions to regional challenges, taking into account the interests and needs of all Central Asian countries.

The Tajik MFA information department reports that on the sidelines of the meeting, Nizomiddin Zohidi held separate talks with Mr. Nicholas Haysom, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of UNAMA, and Mr. Miroslav Jenca, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of UNRCCA to discuss issues related to addressing existing and potential threats to stability and security in the region.