Russia supplies weapons to Tajikistan given Afghan border threat

Moscow / Kabul – ‘The security situation in Afghanistan is alarming. Russia has provided weapons to Tajikistan to counter the threat,’ Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. A few days ago, there was an increase in Taliban suicide bombers near the Tajikistan border. Against this background, Russia appears to have supplied these weapons to Tajikistan. But the Taliban has claimed that there is no threat to the security of neighbouring Central Asian countries from Afghanistan.

On Monday, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon met Russian President Vladimir Putin at St Petersburg. Saying that Tajikistan is a trusted and close ally of Russia, President Putin expressed concerns over the tensions created on the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border. The two leaders also discussed Afghanistan and regional and international issues during the meeting. President Putin then announced that he had provided weapons for Tajikistan’s security, referring to the threat from terrorism in Afghanistan.

Terrorists from Al Qaeda and IS are said to be strengthening their foothold in Afghanistan since the Taliban took over the country. Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov warned that the terrorists from Al Qaeda and IS pose a severe threat to the security of Russia and the Central Asian countries. Russia is keeping a close eye on the activities of these terrorist organisations in Afghanistan, Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg told a Russian news agency. Oleg said drug trafficking was as much a concern as terrorism in Afghanistan.

Even in early December, Russia had announced plans to supply tanks and other weapons to the former Soviet country, pointing to tensions on the Tajik-Afghan border. Russia has also indicated it will deploy additional troops to bases in Tajikistan. Russia is very sensitive about the security of Central Asian countries that were once part of the Soviet Union. Earlier also, President Putin had expressed concern over the security of Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries, including Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

Taliban has taken cognisance of the new deployment announced by the Russian President for the security of Tajikistan. Taliban spokesman Inamullah Samangani said that there is no threat from Afghanistan to any of its neighbouring countries. Earlier, the Taliban had said that Afghan territory would not be used for terrorist activities in other countries. But the Taliban has been criticised internationally for not taking action against Al Qaeda and IS terrorists.