DUSHANBE, December 1, 2008, Asia-Plus — All crossings on the Uzbek-Tajik border have been closed for proceeding.
According to the State Committee for National Security (GKNB), Uzbek authorities took a unilateral decision on closing the crossings on November 27 without notification of the Tajik side.
In the meantime, the MFA information department head Davlat Nazriyev said that the ministry was currently engaged in solving that issue in contact with the Uzbek MFA.
The Uzbek Embassy in Dushanbe said that the issue would be solved in the near future. However, they refrained from giving further details of Uzbek authorities’ decision to close the crossings. “We are currently working in a customary regime, issuing visas to Tajik nationals who want to visit Uzbekistan,” the source at the Uzbek Embassy said.
Some experts suppose that the decision closing crossing on the Uzbek-Tajik border had been probably made in connection with preparation for celebrations to mark Uzbekistan’s Constitution day, which is marked on December 8.
According to the main border directorate within the GKNB, only holders of diplomatic passports, persons having Russian citizenship as well as Tajik national returning home from Uzbekistan are now permitted to proceed via crossings on Uzbek-Tajik border.
