The initiative diplomacy of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Honorable Emomali Rahmon, is reflected in the extensive activities of the Head of State in the international arena and is considered the main indicator of the practical implementation of water diplomacy of the Republic of Tajikistan, and in this context, it indicates the contribution of Tajikistan to the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals in the field of water, climate and glacier protection.
In this regard, on June 8, 2025, the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Honorable Emomali Rahmon, participated and spoke in the high-level event of the launch of the “International Decade of Action on Cryosphere Sciences for 2025-2034” in the city of Nice, France.
It should be noted that this international initiative was submitted by the Republic of Tajikistan and the Republic of France to the UN General Assembly in 2022 and was accepted by the international community, which is a logical continuation of another initiative of Tajikistan to declare “2025 – the International Year of Glacier Conservation”.
At the high-level event to launch the “International Decade for Action on Cryosphere Sciences for 2025-2034” in the French city of Nice, the Leader of the Nation, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, noted that “Tajikistan participates in today’s event as one of the initiators of the “International Decade for Action on Cryosphere Sciences”.
Therefore, the diplomatic and legal foundations of the international initiatives of the Leader of the Nation should be studied and the role of the “International Decade for Action on Cryosphere Sciences for 2025-2034” in glacier conservation and climate change should be investigated.
In the Foreign Policy Concept of the Republic of Tajikistan, the field of water diplomacy is considered one of the priorities of the international activity of the Republic of Tajikistan, and the Tajik side has been pursuing this aspect of foreign policy for more than two decades, and the recent initiative of the Leader of the Nation is also the continuation of water diplomacy.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, the Republic of Tajikistan has used water diplomacy as a tool of foreign policy, using it to present Tajikistan in the international arena and protect the country’s national interests at the regional and global levels. It is especially worth mentioning the activities of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Honorable Emomali Rahmon, in this area, because it was precisely thanks to the efforts and constant support of the Head of State for water and climate diplomacy that the international community accepted the international initiatives of the Tajik side. Now the international initiatives of the Leader of the Nation in the field of water and climate have taken this form.
1. Proposal of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan at the 54th Session of the UN General Assembly (October 1, 1999) – to declare 2003 the Year of Clean Water. Based on this initiative, on September 20, 2000, at the 55th Session of the UN General Assembly, 2003 was declared the International Year of Clean Water. From August 29 to September 1, 2003, the International Forum on Clean Water was held in Dushanbe.
2. Proposal of the President of the Republic of Tajikistan to declare 2005-2015 the International Decade for Action “Water for Life”. On December 23, 2003, the UN General Assembly, based on the Dushanbe Declaration, adopted the relevant Resolution and declared 2005-2015 the International Decade for Action “Water for Life”.
3. Proposal to provide Central Asian countries with clean water by establishing an International Consortium for the Use of Lake Sarez Water.
4. Declaration of 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation (December 20, 2010). In accordance with this initiative, the High-Level International Conference on Water Cooperation was held in Dushanbe on August 20-21, 2013.
5. International Decade of Action “Water for Sustainable Development, 2018-2028” – a high-level event was held in the United States on March 22, 2018, at which the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, as the leader of the country initiating the issue of water issues, also participated and spoke.
6. Initiative on the International Glacier Protection Fund. This issue was raised by the President of the Republic of Tajikistan at the 3rd World Climate Forum on August 31 – September 4, 2009 in Dushanbe. Geneva, then presented at the 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen on December 7-8, 2009.
7. Based on the constructive initiative of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, the UN adopted Special Resolution at the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly on declaring the “International Year of Glacier Conservation – 2025” on December 14, 2022.
8. Official launch of the “International Decade of Action for Glaciology (Cryosphere) Sciences for 2025-2034” at a high-level event in Nice, France on June 9, 2025 – Participation and speech of the Leader of the Nation, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon at this event as one of the countries initiating the “International Decade of Action for Cryosphere Sciences”.
The international initiatives of the Leader of the Nation in the field of water, climate and glacier protection demonstrate the far-sighted foreign policy of the Head of State, aimed at preventing climate change and ensuring a decent life for mankind.
Diplomatic action in the protection of glaciers is reflected in the following aspects:
First, on December 14, 2022, based on the constructive initiative of the Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, the UN adopted a Special Resolution at the 77th Session of the UN General Assembly on declaring the “International Year of Glaciers – 2025”.
Second, the declaration of March 21 as the “International Day for Glaciers” in order to annually draw the attention of the international community to the problems related to glaciers.
Third, on January 21, 2025, UNESCO and the World Meteorological Organization officially launched the “International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation 2025”. Therefore, the process initiated by the Republic of Tajikistan is considered a turning point in the diplomatic efforts of the international community to protect important glaciers.
Fourth, on May 29-31, 2025, the High-Level International Conference on Glacier Preservation will be held in Dushanbe and important decisions and a roadmap for preventing the rapid melting of glaciers will be adopted.
Fifth, on June 09, 2025, the official launch of Tajikistan’s next initiative to declare the “International Decade of Action on Cryosphere Sciences for 2025-2034” at a high-level event in Nice, France.
The President of the Republic of Tajikistan, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, during his speech at the Dushanbe Conference, stated that “Tajikistan has been actively promoting the water and climate agenda in the international arena for the past twenty years, while emphasizing the need for urgent and joint response to protect glaciers.”
“Our initiatives in the field of water and climate have been supported and implemented by the international community through 14 resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly,” stated the Leader of the Nation, His Excellency Emomali Rahmon, at a high-level event in Nice, France.
Of course, the Republic of Tajikistan’s pursuit of water and climate diplomacy is aimed at resolving global problems, and in this way, Tajikistan, as a full-fledged subject of international relations, contributes to the sustainable development of the global community.
Jafarov S.Kh. – Dean of the faculty of International Relations, TNU
Najmiddinov A.F. – Head of the department of European studies, TNU
