The two countries have almost 1,000 km of border that are not yet fully recognized. Crossing of accusations. The conflict has already left 100 victims; now there is a ceasefire. In 10 years, more than 150 clashes took place. They try to resume a joint commission that will work on the determination of borders.
Moscow () – Kyrgyzstan is in national mourning, in memory of those who fell during the clashes from September 14 to 17 on the border with Tajikistan. The conflict has been dragging on for many years, a legacy of the confusion of the Soviet era and the ancestral hostilities between a people of Mongolian origin (the Kyrgyz) and another of Iranian origin (the Tajiks), in a region inhabited by other peoples. Turanics. There is a set of ethnic, economic, political and cultural factors that complicate the management of each of the geographical areas in dispute, along the almost 1,000 kilometers of border not yet fully recognized by both countries.
More than an attack planned by one side or the other, in recent days there has been a sudden shooting, which degenerated into a confrontation throughout the valleys that cross the border area, where it is impossible to distinguish the areas of one or another State. , especially when it comes to roads and water resources. Disputes are also influenced by many local micro-conflicts between tribal and family groups, which are often related to smuggling, with responsibility always shifting to the other party and vice versa.
The head of the Kyrgyz special services, Kamčibek Tašiev, apologized to the parents of the young soldiers killed in the fighting: “You handed them over to serve the country, for me they were almost like sons… we have lost true heroes, I bow to your courage.” Former President Sooronbai Žeenbekov also joined in the public condolences.
Bishkek reported 59 dead, 140 wounded and 140,000 people evacuated from the area of fighting, and accused the Tajiks of a “planned and far-reaching aggression.” It all originated on September 14 in an exchange of fire at the point Kekh border crossing near the Tajik city of Isfar.Kyrgyzstan’s Security Council chief Marat Imankulov said he was “ready to prove to the international community that the Tajik assault was premeditated” and to provide photographic and video material such as Test.
For his part, Tajikistan’s deputy foreign minister, Sodik Imomi, declared that the country lost 41 soldiers “as a result of Kyrgyz aggression” in various inhabited centers on September 16. Although he did not clarify the number of civilians involved or dead, he said that several injured are in serious condition.
The accusations against the Kyrgyz mention “crimes against humanity”, with violent shootings against civilian houses, in which a family with children and a pregnant woman were allegedly exterminated, as well as attacks on ambulances and local government offices. However, the portal eurasianet has published videos that do not confirm the accusations from Tajikistan, “where the information suffers from a strong state repression”. The videos would have been filmed by Tajik soldiers and show a direct attack against Kyrgyz targets, but not a defense of the national territory.
The most affected area seems to be the Kyrgyz city of Batken and its surroundings, with its airport, where the assault by the Tajik army was allegedly focused. The Prime Minister of Bishkek, Akylbek Zhaparov, reported the destruction of 282 targets in the area, military barracks and civilian homes, markets and shops, nine schools and three kindergartens. All schools in the area have suspended classes and many people have been evacuated. The president has already signed a decree on “immediate and extraordinary reconstruction measures for the territorial units of the Batken and Oš regions”.
On September 16, the two presidents – the Kyrgyz Sadyr Zhaparov and the Tajik Emomali Rakhmon – met at the Samarkand summit. They agreed to a ceasefire and the withdrawal of the troops deployed on both sides of the border. A joint commission with Tashiev and his Tajik counterpart Saimumin Yatimov will work on the ground to clarify all the details of the conflict.
The work of the Intergovernmental Border Commission, which was approved several months ago with great effort, will also be resumed. Armed conflicts on these uncertain borders have already accumulated 150 incidents in the last 10 years, and the International Committee of the Red Cross has called on the leaders of both countries to prevent the peaceful civilian population from being involved in these clashes.
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