Kyrgyzstan And Tajikistan Clashed In A Border Dispute

Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan clashed in a border dispute. The death toll in the border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan reached 100, Putin spoke to both countries.

Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan said on Sunday that nearly 100 people had been killed in their border clashes. A delicate ceasefire between these two Central Asian countries continued till the second day.

At the same time, Russia, a mutual ally of these two countries, has urged to reduce tension.

Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan clashed in a border dispute on 14-16 September, accusing each other of using tanks, mortars, rocket artillery, and assault drones to attack posts and surrounding settlements.

Both countries share a border with China, while Tajikistan also has a long border with Afghanistan. Elections are fought along the long stretch of the border separating the two former Soviet states.

Clashes in April 2021 killed more than 50 people and raised the prospect of a wider conflict.

Central Asian border issues stem largely from Soviet times when Moscow tried to divide the region between groups that often settled among other ethnicities.

Kyrgyzstan reported 13 additional deaths in fighting late Sunday, up from 46 earlier. The former Soviet state also said that 102 people were injured in the attack.

Earlier, Kyrgyzstan said it had evacuated some 137,000 people from the conflict zone. The government declared 19 September a day of mourning for the victims.

Kyrgyz media, which called the conflict an invasion, reported on Sunday that some evacuees were returning to their homes.

Tajikistan reported on Sunday that 35 people had been killed. It has not reported any mass evacuation.

Tajikistan’s foreign ministry said Kyrgyzstan continued a media campaign against them and said Kyrgyz President Sadir Zaparov used the word “enemy” to refer to Tajikistan in his Saturday address.

At the same time, the Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the telephone with Zaparov and Tajikistan’s veteran President Emomali Rahmon on Sunday.

His office said in a statement that Putin urged the parties to stop escalating and take measures to resolve the situation “particularly by peaceful, political and diplomatic means as soon as possible”.