Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan finalizing agreement on delimitation of state border

The government delegations of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan have fully completed the process of describing the remaining sections of their shared state border, according to “Khovar”. 

On December 4, in the Kyrgyz city of Batken, the co-chairs of the delegations, Saymumin Yatimov and Kamchybek Tashiev, announced the completion of the border line’s delineation within Kyrgyzstan’s territory. As a result, the working groups were instructed to "begin formalizing the final documents."

"The border issue with Tajikistan has been resolved. What remains now is parliamentary ratification and the signatures of our esteemed presidents. In a few months, we will finalize the border delimitation process. I would like to express my gratitude to all members of the commission for the enormous amount of work accomplished, and particularly to Mr. Yatimov," said Tashiev.

The citizens of both neighboring republics have been waiting for this resolution for over 20 years. Negotiations to determine the Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan border began in 2002. Until 2022, the discussions were sporadic and marked by long interruptions. By that time, the parties had managed to agree on just over 50% of the 972-kilometer shared border.

Due to numerous disputed areas along the Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan border, conflicts frequently erupted among local residents over water, land, roads, and pastures. These disputes often escalated in recent years, occasionally involving military forces.

In April-May 2021 and September 2022, large-scale armed clashes broke out along the border involving the militaries of both nations, resulting in dozens of fatalities. Since May 2021, Kyrgyzstan has kept the border with Tajikistan closed.

The most recent major conflict compelled both sides to intensify the negotiation process. From the autumn of 2022 until now, dozens of meetings have been held to address issues related to the border delimitation.