CIS leaders to meet in Tajikistan

The CIS presidents will meet in Dushanbe, Tajikistan's capital, on Saturday, to discuss further development of the post-Soviet association and urgent international problems, the Kremlin reported. "The summit will be chaired by Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon," the Kremlin said. The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) will celebrate its 20th anniversary in December. The CIS is a loose association of former Soviet republics. It consists of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Ukraine has not ratified the CIS Charter but participates in its activities.