By November 1, Tajikistan has reached 86 percent of the autumn conscription campaign target, Orif Nozimiyon, the chief spokesman for the Ministry of Defense (MoD), told Asia-Plus in an interview.
Recall, the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) fulfilled its autumn conscription campaign target ahead of schedule, on October 22.
In the territorial cross section the percentage the target reached was: the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) – 100 percent; Khatlon – 85 percent; Sughd – 90 percent; Dushanbe – 96 percent; and districts subordinate to the center (RRPs) – 78 percent.
The autumn conscription campaign is carried out from October 1 through November, and the draft affects able-bodied male citizens in the age bracket of 18 years old to 27 years old who are not members of the armed forces reserve.
The two-month-long effort seeking to enlist young men aged 18-27 for the two-year compulsory military service takes place twice a year, in the spring and in the autumn. According to the Ministry of Defense, every year, some 15,000-16,000 young Tajik men are drafted into the country’s armed forces.
Some sources say more than 600,000 young men in Tajikistan are eligible for military service, but some 150,000 of them have received draft deferments or are exempted from the military service and some 100,000 other conscript-age young Tajiks are outside the country in search of a living.
Young Tajiks can avoid or postpone military service if they are ill, studying at university, an only son, or if they have two children.
Tajikistan’s armed forces consist of Ground Forces, Mobile Forces (paratroopers of the armed forces of Tajikistan), Air Force and Air Defense Force.
