Russia is calling on Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan to take urgent measures to normalize the situation on the border between the two countries and to prevent the attempts of escalation, the commentary of the Russian MFA reads.
The foreign ministry pointed out that Moscow continues to follow with concern the tense situation on the Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border, "which sharply escalated again in the night of September 16 as a result of another round of armed confrontation." "We call on both sides to take urgent and exhaustive measures for the sustainable transfer of the situation into the political and diplomatic channel, and for the suppression of any escalation attempts, as well as provocations of third parties," noted the diplomatic office.
"Unfortunately, there are people killed and wounded on both sides. In this regard, we express our condolences to the families of those killed and injured," the commentary reads.
The Russian foreign ministry noted that Bishkek and Dushanbe have repeatedly stated that the fundamental cause of the conflict is the incomplete process of delimitation and demarcation of a number of sections of the Kyrgyz-Tajik state border. "In this connection, we confirm our sincere readiness to provide any assistance acceptable to our partners. We draw attention to the wide range of means in our "armory" to ensure favorable external conditions for negotiations and border delimitation," stressed Smolensk Square.
"We welcome the mediation efforts of the Secretary-General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization [Stanislav Zas], who maintains close contacts with the Kyrgyz and Tajik sides in order to restore stability and prevent the escalation of the conflict as soon as possible," it added.
As the ministry informed, according to incoming information, Russian citizens in the zone of tension were not injured. "Russian teachers assigned to work in schools in Tajikistan's Sughd Region are safe and in constant contact with the consulate general of the Russian Federation in Khujand. Teachers from Russia working in schools in Batken region of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan are also not affected, the consulate general of the Russian Federation in Osh is in constant contact with them," the diplomatic mission said.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Akishin Vyacheslav/Creative Commons 2.0
Based on materials from TASS