On Thursday November 24, Shukurjon Zuhurov, the Speaker for the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower house of parliament), met in St Petersburg with his Afghan counterpart Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, who is the Speaker for the Wolesi Jirga (the lower house of Afghanistan’s bicameral National Assembly).

Muhammadato Sultonov a spokesman for the Majlisi Namoyandagon, says the two discussed bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.  They, in particular, discussed issues related to implementation of regional energy, transportation and trade projects.    

Zuhurov, in particular, noted that further development of the region depended on achievement of peace and accord in Afghanistan.    

The Afghan problem can be solved only peacefully, at the negotiating table through mutual concessions, Tajik parliament speaker noted.

Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi has been the Speaker for the Wolesi Jirga since at least 2011. Born in the Imam Sahib district of northern Kunduz province in 1962, Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi is ethnic Uzbek. After completing high school education in 1979, he was admitted to the Languages & Literature Faculty of Kabul University.  But he joined the Jihad when the former Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.  Following mujahidin’s victory, he was appointed as Shir Khan Dry Port director in 1993.  Subsequently, he was appointed as commander of 3rd southern border police zone.  After the collapse of the Taliban regime, he served as commander of border police in 2002 before being elected as Emergency Loya Jirga member the same year.  Ibrahimi was elected as Wolesi Jirga (lower house) member from Kunduz in 2005.  He won a parliamentary seat for the second time in 2010 when was elected as speaker of the Wolesi Jirga.