DUSHANBE
, April 24, Asia-Plus –
Tajikistan
intends to introduce up-to-date system of protection of its common border with
Afghanistan
, Safarali Sayfulloyev, First Deputy Chairman of the Committee for Protection of State Border of Tajikistan, announced at a news conference in
Dushanbe
on April 21.
According to him, at present Japanese specialists are working to determine the sections of the border for installing laser system of protection of the Afghan border.
“This issue is still under consideration but in any case, we are not going to give up the traditional engineering-technical works,” Tajik border official said.
He did not rule out the possibility of mixed system of protection of the border, which would include both the traditional engineering-technical works and a laser protection system.
Tajik border troops have warded off 33 attempts of illegally crossing the border and detained 47 trespassers since the beginning of the year. Tajik borer guards have detained 15 drug traffickers and have intercepted some 556 kilograms of drugs, with 310 kilograms of them being heroin, at the Tajik-Afghan border over the mentioned period, according to Sayfulloyev.
In the meantime, Russian media report that under an agreement reached at the 55th meeting of the Council of CIS Border Guard Troops Commanders in Minsk CIS border guards will hold joint operations on the Tajik-Afghan border in 2006. The head of the Council’s Coordination Service, Lieutenant General Aleksandr Manilov was quoted as saying that the joint operation on the Tajik-Afghan border was scheduled for August 2006. Its purpose is to prevent arms, drugs, and illegal migrants from crossing into CIS countries from
Afghanistan
, he said. According to the Russian general, the operation will involve border guards from
Russia
,
Uzbekistan
,
Tajikistan
, and
Kyrgyzstan
. “The CIS states adjacent to this area will also take part in the operation by a separate plan,” he added.
