On the margines of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon on September 22 held a high-level meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres in New York to discuss key areas of international cooperation.

The Tajik president’s official website says the meeting focused on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UN 2.0 initiative, and the Secretary-General’s “Vision for a Modern UN System.”  The two leaders also exchanged views on the comprehensive reform of the UN under the "UN-80" program.

Climate and environmental issues featured prominently in the talks.  President Rahmon emphasized the urgent need for global cooperation on water resource management, glacier preservation, and climate action.  Counter-terrorism efforts and combating extremism were also discussed as critical areas for coordinated global engagement.

Both sides acknowledged that escalating geopolitical tensions, security threats, armed conflicts, terrorism, economic instability, and food insecurity underscore the urgent need for more effective international collaboration.

With concern, the leaders noted that only 35% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are on track to be achieved by 2030.  President Rahmon stressed that the broader use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence will be essential to accelerate progress toward these global objectives.