Tajik President Emomali Rahmon ordered to strengthen the border with Afghanistan in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO). There has recently been an accumulation of militants from various international terrorist groups. Afghan Ambassador to Tajikistan Mohammad Zahir Agbar went to the Pamirs to personally get acquainted with the situation and, if possible, agree on expanding economic cooperation between the border regions of the two countries.
On July 21, Emomali Rahmon held an urgent meeting of the country's Security Council due to the aggravation of the situation on the Tajik-Afghan border in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. The day before, it was reported that foreign fighters were spotted in the border areas of the Afghan province of Badakhshan. "Several dozen foreign terrorists arrived in Afghan Darvaz, including more than three dozen immigrants from Tajikistan and several immigrants from Chechnya," said the head of the Afghan district, Nusai Abudlgafor Gardish. According to him, the militants who arrived through the Registan district joined the local Taliban and concentrated in the area of the Khurkat settlement of the Shugnan district.
"In connection with the aggravation of the political situation in the region, the President instructed the members of the Security Council, heads of power structures and law enforcement agencies to take measures to ensure security on the Tajik territory bordering Afghanistan," the press service of the head of Tajikistan said. Emomali Rahmon also ordered to take measures to strengthen the state border, to intensify activities in the fight against crime on the external borders, as well as terrorism and extremism, illegal drug trafficking.
Concerned about the results of the Tajik Security Council, Afghan Ambassador Mohammad Zahir Agbar, accompanied by the head of the Foreign Relations Department of the State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan, Nazrullo Valiev, left for the Pamirs. On the eve of the trip, he discussed the security issues of the Tajik-Afghan border with the head of the State Committee for National Security, Saidmumin Yatimov. "The purpose of the trip is to get acquainted with the situation in the border areas, strengthen the common borders of the two countries, develop economic cooperation, and take security measures," the press service of the Afghan embassy said on a Facebook page.
The ambassador has already met with the chairman of the Darvaz region, Saidburkhon Abudrakhmonzoda. "For the first time in history, the Afghan ambassador and special envoy of Afghanistan arrived in Darwaz to work out a joint program for the security personnel of the two countries," Abdurakhmonzoda said. In Kalai-Khumb, the Afghan diplomat discussed border issues with an Afghan delegation from the Nusai district of Badakhshan province. On the agenda are Vanj region and Khorog - the capital of GBAO.
The Tajik-Afghan border, in particular its Pamir section, has been restless for decades. "Those groups that are in Gorno Badakhshan of Afghanistan do not pose a military threat to the Tajik border. They can only pose a threat if, for some reason, for example, corruption, the Tajik border guards want to let the militants pass. Drug trafficking works with the participation of both It cannot be carried out by only one side. There is interaction. The configuration of this interaction can change and as a result of these changes local armed clashes occurred on the border - redistribution of spheres of influence between drug groups on both sides, "an expert on Central Asia told Vestnik Kavkaza. Asia and the Middle East Alexander Knyazev.
According to the expert, the main non-state, irregular formations in Afghanistan, in particular, the Taliban movement (banned in the Russian Federation) are busy with internal problems, as it actually was almost always. "Now the Taliban have become more active in many provinces of Afghanistan. But they have absolutely no time for the Tajik border. Moreover, the current Taliban emphasizes its non-international character. It is absolutely not in his interests to provoke destabilization on the border," Knyazev said. As for the international groups of immigrants from Central Asia and other countries that really exist there, they, according to Knyazev, are small and insignificant, and, given the nature of the border with Tajikistan, they do not pose a military threat either.
In general, the situation on the Tajik-Afghan border is stable. There have been no particular exacerbations in recent years. But in the context of the upcoming presidential elections in Tajikistan, it is not the aggravation itself that is important, but the informational occasion. On August 6, the date of voting will be announced at an extraordinary session of parliament. Judging by the situation, Emomali Rahmon will run for another term. He has already begun his election campaign - he visits all regions of Tajikistan in turn, opens new social and sports facilities, distributes awards, and dismisses negligent officials. "Now it is important to support Rakhmon's reputation as the only guarantor of security for Tajikistan," said Alexander Knyazev. Therefore, the state of the Tajik-Afghan border is actively exploited by the leadership of Tajikistan as an element of propaganda.
