DUSHANBE -- European Council President Donald Tusk has arrived in Tajikistan at the start of a four-day tour of Central Asia.
Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin welcomed Tusk at Dushanbe's airport late on the evening of May 29.
The European Council earlier said that during his May 29-June 2 Central Asian tour, Tusk will hold talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, with President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev and First President Nursultan Nazarbaev in Kazakhstan, and with President Shavkat Mirziyoev in Uzbekistan.
The council also said that Tusk's trip was "a further expression of the EU's commitment to stronger partnerships with the region and the individual countries," adding that during his talks, Tusk will focus on regional and bilateral cooperation, climate change, protection of the environment, and border management as well as regional security.
Tusk's trip to the three former Soviet republics comes two weeks after the European Union launched its new Central Asian strategy.