Tajik, President calls international community for decisive measures to protect glaciers

Dushanbe , May 30 : President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon on Friday called on the international community to take urgent and decisive measures to protect glaciers and strengthening the multilateral cooperation for comprehensive monitoring of glaciers.
President of the Republic of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon said this while addressing the ‘High-Level International Conference on Glaciers’ Preservation, jointly organized by the government of Tajikistan and United Nations along with Prime Minister of Pakistan, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and other world leaders in Dushanbe (Tajikistan).
“I want to note clearly that glaciers’ preservation is not just a problem of countries with glaciers but rather a global crisis that deserves the immediate attention of the international community.”
He also proposed for conducing the comprehensive monitoring and scientific research to better understand the dynamic changes of glaciers and the impacts on ecosystems, water resources, socio-economic issues, and global climate change.
Immediate actions to reduce the process of glacier melt; he suggested that countries with the ability to collect accurate data on the state of glaciers, particularly through satellites, should establish a regular exchange of information with countries that lack such capabilities.
He called for implement collective actions to address the socio-economic consequences of glacier melting, including its impact on accessing water, ensuring food security, producing electricity, protecting cultural and natural heritage.
“We must make every effort to ensure the implementation of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and take the necessary measures to prevent an increase in global temperature ” he said.
Meanwhile he said that especially in mountain areas, the rapid melting of glaciers is causing flooding, mudslides, and landslides, damaging infrastructure significantly.
The President said that Tajikistan with 93 percent of the territory covered by mountains, remains vulnerable against natural disasters related to water, including rapid melting of glaciers and “Our country has the largest glaciers in Central Asia, is facing this crisis now.”
So far, out of 14,000 glaciers, which are the source of 60 percent of drinking water in the region, 1,300 have completely melted, and the process of rapid melting is still continuing and said that the loss of glaciers threatens not only our natural heritage but also the lives of millions of people in the region.
Emomali Rahmon said that this Conference is an important step towards implementing the United Nations resolution declaring the year 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation and today’s gathering provides a useful platform to exchange views on this vital topic and dialogue on the rational use of water resources and glaciers preservation.
He said that climate change has already caused the loss of about a third of mountain glaciers around the world and this process is not just an environmental problem but is closely related to many aspects of human life.
Tajikistan’s glaciers are not only a major source of water for Central Asian rivers but also play a pivotal role in maintaining the stability of the region’s climate, and are of great significance for protecting the global climate, he said.
He said that this is worth noting that studying ice samples from the Vanjyakh (known as Fedchenko) Glacier, which is one of the biggest continental glaciers in the world with a length of 77 kilometers and a thickness of about one kilometer, can reveal thousands of years of climate history for humanity.
In concluding remarks, he said that Tajikistan will raise this initiative within the United Nations framework and calls upon all countries to support it and the President proposed to develop a global strategy for glaciers’ preservation at the global level.