During his official visit to Tajikistan, Kyrgyz leader has reportedly pointed to the necessity of intensifying work of Kyrgyz-Tajik groups on delineation of mutual border.
Kyrgyzstan’s Kabar news agency reports that in the course of talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon in an expanded format Sooronbay Jeenbekov, “Our people are waiting for the completion of delimitation of the state border.”
He reportedly pointed to the necessity of raising the effectiveness of bilateral mechanisms in order to activate the full range of bilateral cooperation.
“In this regard, the Interstate Coordination Council, the Kyrgyz-Tajik Intergovernmental Commission for the Integrated Review of Bilateral Issues and the Delimitation and Demarcation of the State Border should work on a regular basis. Our people have been waiting for a long time to complete the delimitation of the state border. An early resolution of the delimitation of the Kyrgyz-Tajik state border and signing of the relevant treaty will be an important factor in strengthening security and stability in the border area,” Jeenbekov said.
Kyrgyz leader pointed to the necessity of intensifying the work of government working groups and holding a meeting to finalize the legal framework for describing and tracing the line of the Kyrgyz-Tajik state border.
In addition, the Kyrgyz President specified the need for joint effective measures in the sphere of protecting state borders, combating terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking, Kabar said.
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan have been unable to agree on the location of the border they inherited when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. As the population in the dense Ferghana Valley grows, it has become increasingly difficult to demarcate the contested sections, where valuable agricultural land often lies.
The area at the focus of unrest among residents of border areas of the two countries lies on the jagged frontier where the east of Tajikistan’s Sughd province and Kyrgyzstan’s Batken region meet.
Skirmishes have sparked between residents of Isfara (Tajikistan) and Batken (Kyrgyzstan) districts along the Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border.
The latest skirmishes sparked by a territorial dispute between residents along the Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border escalated on August 4, 2015, leaving several people injured and damaging multiple homes.
