Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan on Friday accused each other of violating the ceasefire in effect at the border since 4 p.m. local time and agreed to by their respective presidents after heavy fighting during the day. This escalation, which occurred on the border between the two countries, left more than 30 injured.
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan accused each other on Friday of violating the ceasefire in effect at the border since 4 p.m. and agreed to by their respective presidents after heavy fighting during the day.
“Despite a meeting between leaders and the announcement of the ceasefire, the Kyrgyz side began to fire (…) towards three villages in Tajikistan”, denounced the Tajik border guards. “Violating the agreements reached, the Tajik side again opened fire on the positions of the border guards”, denounced their Kyrgyz counterparts, judging the situation “still tense”.
Russia expresses ‘concern’
This ceasefire came after an escalation of clashes on the border between these two former Soviet republics in Central Asia which left more than 30 injured. While clashes regularly take place on the border between these two countries, which have been entangled for years in a territorial dispute, the latest violence has marked a notable aggravation.
Russia expressed its “concern” about the violence on Friday, with its foreign ministry calling on “both sides to take comprehensive and urgent measures to (…) put an end to any attempt at escalation”. According to Bishkek, Tajik forces on Friday shelled the border town of Batken, located in southwestern Kyrgyzstan, in a disputed area between the two countries.
50 deaths in 2021
“The approaches to Batken Airport and (sites) on the outskirts of town came under fire from multiple rocket launcher systems. Civilian infrastructure in the town of Batken was destroyed,” the officials said. Kyrgyz border guards in a statement.
Clashes between the two countries earlier this week left two Tajik border guards dead and several injured on both sides. The year 2021 has seen an unprecedented number of clashes between the two sides, leaving more than 50 dead and raising fears of the widening of the conflict.