Tajikistan is in talks with Russia and a Moscow-led regional security group about the possibility of Russia deploying troops to jointly patrol the volatile border with Afghanistan, three Tajik security sources said. Reuters on Tuesday.
Five Chinese citizens were killed and five wounded near the border last week as a result of attacks launched from Afghanistan.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon held talks on Monday with the heads of his security agencies about the situation and China has advised its citizens, who are engaged in various mining and commercial activities, to urgently leave the border area.
One of the three sources, in the Security Council of Tajikistan, said Reuters that authorities have held talks with Russia about the possibility of deploying forces from Moscow’s military base in the Central Asian country to jointly patrol the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.
The base is Russia’s largest military facility abroad and is located near Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe.
“We are currently in talks. I think a decision will be made… this week,” the source said. Reuters.
Two of the other sources, from Tajikistan’s State Committee for National Security, confirmed the talks with Russia, which, if successful, would use helicopters to help patrol the 1,344 kilometer border with Afghanistan, which runs through mountainous terrain.
The defense ministries of Tajikistan and Russia declined to comment when asked about the talks.
The Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization alliance, which sources said was also involved in the talks, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have said they will cooperate with Tajikistan on border security issues.
In a call with his Tajik counterpart, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi expressed regret and said Kabul was prepared to boost coordination between border forces, adding that “joint measures against malicious elements are a pressing need.”
“The Islamic Emirate is fully prepared to strengthen border security, conduct joint investigations and engage in any form of coordination,” Muttaqi said, according to a statement from the Afghan Foreign Ministry.
He added that “an atmosphere of trust” has recently developed between the two countries and should not be undermined.
Until the early 2000s, the Russian base, together with Russian border troops in Tajikistan, was tasked with protecting Tajikistan’s border with Afghanistan. Tajikistan has independently protected the border since 2005.
