Indian Council of World Affairs

The finalisation of delimitation and demarcation of boundaries necessitates a sustainable strategy for cross-border cooperation, particularly among border communities between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. It also symbolises the importance of regional cooperation in resolving core security concerns and reaffirms Russian influence in the Central Asian Region. 

On December 4, 2024, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan announced a border delineation accord concerning the last disputed frontier in the Central Asian region. The meeting between the head of Kyrgyzstan’s State Committee for National Security, Kamchybek Tashiyev, and his Tajik counterpart, Saimumin Yatimov, was held in the Kyrgyz city of Batken, south of the Tajik border. After the meeting, they issued a joint statement. Tashiyev said that all outstanding disputes have been settled, and Yatimov stated that the border dispute has been “practically resolved.”[i] Their respective Working Groups will now prepare final legal documents, which will be submitted to the respective legislatures and Presidents of the two countries for their ratification. However, the specifics regarding how the deal would delineate the disputed boundary have yet to be made public. 

This agreement is likely to resolve decades of territorial conflicts and end long-standing tensions. It promises to unlock various opportunities between the two sides and portends well for regional cooperation. As the border dispute started during the Soviet era, understanding the historical background, particularly Russia’s connection, is crucial for comprehending the years of conflict and chaos that followed the disintegration of the USSR in 1991. 

Border Dispute: A Brief History 

Before the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, the region was not divided on ethnic lines. However, the influence of the Soviet Union, particularly the establishment of the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR) within the Uzbekistan Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) in 1924 and the creation of the Kyrgyz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR) in 1926, significantly shaped the Kyrgyz-Tajik boundary. This administrative-territorial delineation, conducted in the 1920s and most of the 1930s, was part of the Soviet Union’s national-territorial delineation process. The process was influenced by ethnic identity and aimed to facilitate administrative organisation and agricultural collectivisation. The establishment of Tajikistan as a Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) in 1929 and the Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) in 1936 further influenced their border disputes, laying the foundation of the contentious territorial conflicts.[ii]

The existing Kyrgyz-Tajik border disputes can be traced back to the era of the Soviet Union and the land tenure system it endorsed. This system abolished private ownership of land and minerals, including soil, water, and forests. It introduced the nationalisation of land to boost agricultural production by organising land into large-scale collective farms (Kolkhozy). Under this system, the Kyrgyz and Tajik communities shared common property rights to access and utilise natural resources. However, the land tenure system based on collective farms had many deficiencies, such as low earnings, farm inefficiency, lack of land ownership, and excessive state control. In 1935, the Soviet leadership, to resolve these issues, implemented land management initiatives and issued state acts, granting continuous land use rights to collective farms and other land users.[iii] These initiatives further led to land mismanagement and entanglement, revealing the ambiguity of boundary lines between collective farms. 

From 1949 to 1991, several Kyrgyz-Tajik joint parity commissions were established to address land disputes and establish the boundaries between regions involving the collective farms. Despite these efforts, border disputes persisted, and both countries failed to reach a consensus about the disposition of several contested points. Moreover, the Batken region of Kyrgyzstan has become the site of a prolonged conflict between the Kyrgyz and Tajiks from the adjacent Isfara region of Tajikistan. 

After Independence 

The political and socio-economic transformations that Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan experienced as a consequence of the Soviet Union’s disintegration in 1991 were substantial. After independence, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan shared a 970-kilometre border, almost half of which was left to be demarcated. This led to persistent tensions around access to transportation routes and resources, especially to water in agricultural areas. The resolution of territorial disputes was further complicated by the Tajikistan Civil War (1992-1997), which halted the demarcation process until 2002. 

Both sides had many differences regarding boundary lines during the commission meetings.  First, they could not decide which document to use to delineate their borders. Both parties referred to different documents to safeguard their respective state interests. Tajikistan relied on maps and documentation from 1924-1926, while Kyrgyzstan suggested utilising maps and records from 1958-1959.[iv] Secondly, Tajik members consistently suggested bisecting the disputed territories, while Kyrgyz members advocated for delineating the state border based on actual usage, following the agreement on the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS, 1991), the Almaty Declaration (1991), and the Moscow Convention (1994) concerning independence, inviolability, and territorial integrity.[v] Negotiations were further delayed due to restricted access to old Soviet maps that could have been used to define precise borderlines between both sides. Since 2022, several confrontations have occurred between Kyrgyz and Tajik border communities. 

Current Scenario 

Post-independence, the primary source of dispute shifted from ethnic diversity to various claims regarding infrastructural essentials such as roads, canals, water, and pastures. These disputes, particularly over water intake and pastures, have profoundly affected the livelihoods of local communities along the borders. The constant issue regarding enclaves, notably Vorukh, a territory of Tajikistan located within the Batken area of Kyrgyzstan, has further exacerbated the situation. The border clashes, which initially took place among civilians, have gradually escalated to involve border guards and military personnel. The intensification of armed clashes in recent years has led to numerous fatalities and the destruction of properties. 

Since 2021, the conflict has escalated into widespread violence, with both sides using heavy artillery, resulting in significant casualties and displacement of hundreds of people. In September 2022, the border dispute escalated to “war-scale” fighting, resulting in over 100 deaths.[vi] Subsequently, Kyrgyzstan sought Russia’s intervention to resolve the border conflict as Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan are members of the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO). 

In October 2022, Russia, a significant player in the region, played a pivotal role in facilitating discussions between the Presidents of the two nations Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Sadyr Japarov and Emomali Rahmon, in Astana. During the meeting, the negotiation process for the delimitation and demarcation of the Tajik-Kyrgyz state border was discussed. Putin’s commitment to assist in resolving border disputes and his agreement to provide Soviet-era maps to resolve the conflict between both sides provided the reassurance for the resolution of the dispute.[vii] Following the meeting, efforts for border delimitation gained momentum. In 2023, Kyrgyz and Tajik Presidents met on the sidelines of the UN Summit to discuss border issues and committed to collaborating on border demarcation regularly.[viii] Working-level meetings have since been held, in principle understandings have been reached, and the preparation of final legal documents for the ratification process on either side has gained momentum.   

Conclusion 

The border conflict between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan has evolved beyond territorial delineation and demarcation, including critical aspects such as people's lives, land and water resources, infrastructure, and associated facilities. The declaration of the agreement indicates an important step forward for regional cooperation, with an opportunity to strengthen relations and economic opportunities in the region and beyond. When fully resolved, the Kyrgyz-Tajik border issue will be a testimony to the importance of regional cooperation, under such frameworks as the CSTO, in matters pertaining to core areas of security and the well-being of people overcoming ethnic differences. The details concerning delineating the disputed border areas in the agreement remain undisclosed as of now. It is expected that the people of the two countries, particularly border communities, will react positively to the agreement.

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*Dr. Punit Gaur, Research Fellow, Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA)
Disclaimer: The views expressed are personal.

Endnotes

[i] The Hindu, “Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan reach deal on last contested Central Asian border”, December 4, 2024, https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-reach-deal-on-last-contested-central-asian-border/article68948226.ece. Accessed on December 5, 2024.

[ii] Paul Goble, “Kyrgyz-Tajik Territorial Disputes Threaten Regional Stability”, Eurasia Daily Monitor, November 30, 2017, at https://jamestown.org/program/kyrgyz-tajik-territorial-disputes-threaten-regional-stability/. Accessed on December 07, 2024.

[iii] Zubaidullo Ubaidulloev (2015), "The Russian-Soviet legacies in reshaping the national territories in Central Asia: A catastrophic case of Tajikistan", Journal of Eurasian Studies, volume 6, issue 1, pp 79-87.

[iv] Gulzana Kurmanalieva (2019), "Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan: Endless Border Conflicts", EUCACIS Online Paper. Accessed on December 8, 2024.

[v] Ibid

[vi] BBC (2022), "Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border clashes claim nearly 100 lives", September 19, 2022, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-62950787. Accessed on December 14, 2024.

[vii] Newsweek (2022), "Putin Steps in to Mediate Border Dispute Between Two Other Nations", October 14, 2022, https://www.newsweek.com/putin-mediate-border-dispute-kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-russia-1751850. Accessed on December 16, 2024.

[viii] eurasianet (2023), "Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan presidents meet to tamp down border tensions", September 20, 2023, https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-presidents-meet-to-tamp-down-border-tensions. Accessed on December 18, 2024.