KEY POINTS
- Tajikistan is in talks with Russia to deploy troops to patrol the border with Afghanistan after repeated cross-border attacks.
- Five Chinese nationals were killed and five others injured in attacks from Afghanistan over the past week.
- Tajik President held an emergency security meeting and ordered measures to prevent further attacks.
- Pakistan stressed that Afghan soil must not be used for attacks on neighbours or any other country.
DUSHANBE, Tajikistan: Tajikistan is in talks with Russia and a Moscow-led regional security alliance about the potential deployment of Russian troops to jointly patrol its volatile border with Afghanistan after repeated cross-border attacks from Afghanistan, three Tajik security sources, cited by Reuters, said on Tuesday.
The move comes after a series of cross-border attacks from Afghanistan in which five Chinese nationals were killed and five others injured over the past week, Tajikistan’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon convened an emergency meeting with the heads of security agencies on Monday to assess the border situation.
China has advised its citizens, engaged in mining and business activities along the border, to leave the area immediately.
One source in the Tajik Security Council, cited by Reuters, said, “We are currently in talks. I think a decision will be made… this week.”
Two other sources from the State Committee for National Security (SCNS) said that talks with Russia involve deploying helicopters to patrol the 1,344-kilometre (835-mile) mountainous border with Afghanistan.
Both the Tajik and Russian defence ministries declined to comment, according to Reuters. The Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) has not responded to requests for comment, Reuters reported.
Afghanistan’s Taliban has stated its willingness to cooperate with Tajikistan on border security. However, the Taliban regime failed to act against terrorist groups operating from the Afghanistan territory.
Historically, until 2005, Russian border troops were responsible for guarding Tajikistan’s border with Afghanistan.
Attacks on Chinese workers
The latest attacks from Afghanistan have targeted Chinese nationals working in Tajikistan’s mountainous Badakhshan region.
Radio Liberty’s Tajik service, Ozodi, reported that two Chinese road-construction workers were killed in the Darvoz district, in the Gorno-Badakhshan region, when armed attackers crossed from Afghanistan. The victims were working on the “Qalai Khumb–Vanj–Rushan” border highway.
Tajikistan’s Foreign Ministry said the assault was carried out using an armed drone “equipped with grenades and firearms” launched from Afghan territory.
A Russian analyst, Andrey Serenko, stated on Telegram that some Taliban factions may be attempting to push Chinese companies out of gold-mining concessions in Badakhshan.
The attack in Shudk follows another incident on 26 November, when three Chinese employees of a gold-mining company were killed in a drone attack originating from Afghanistan. The ministry condemned the assault as a grave act of terrorism.
China, Pakistan, and Iran condemned the attack. Beijing urged its citizens to evacuate border areas immediately.
Rising violence and border insecurity
The Tajik-Afghan border has seen increasing violence over the past year, including shootings, drone attacks, and clashes linked to smuggling networks.
Tajik security forces have engaged in at least 10 armed confrontations with Afghan drug-smuggling groups in the past six months, killing four smugglers, according to Asia-Plus news agency.
On 22 November, the SCNS reported eliminating a seven-member Afghan smuggling group using drones.
Two bodies and 116 packets of narcotics were recovered; the remaining five Afghan smugglers are still unaccounted for.
Tajikistan lies along a major drug-trafficking route from Afghanistan to Europe, and the rugged terrain makes border control challenging.
China urges nationals to leave Tajik-Afghan border areas
The Chinese Embassy in Dushanbe urged companies and nationals to leave the Tajik-Afghan border regions amid attacks from Afghanistan.
Chinese Ambassador Guo Zhijun held urgent discussions with Tajik officials, stressing the need to ensure the safety of Chinese enterprises and personnel.
Pakistan strongly condemned the killing of Chinese workers near the Afghan border. Pakistan’s Foreign Office said the use of armed drones underscores the serious threat from Afghanistan.
Islamabad urged Afghanistan’s Taliban regime to take decisive action against terrorist groups operating from its territory, stressing that Afghan soil must not be used for attacks on neighbours or any other country.
According to a statement on the presidential website, Rahmon “strongly condemned the illegal and provocative actions of Afghan citizens” and ordered authorities to take effective measures to prevent further incidents.
Tajik leadership described the attacks as a direct threat to national security and regional stability.
