DUSHANBE, April 11, 2013, Asia-Plus  -- Tajik Foreign Ministry has applied to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan with solicitation to help solve the problem of transportation of cargo to this neighboring country.

Several days ago, a group of Tajik haulers gathered near the Afghan Embassy in Dushanbe, protesting against the significant rise in fees for services provided by the Afghan diplomatic mission.

Those gathered were reportedly discontented about recent rise in fees for the vehicle entry permit to Afghanistan.

Earlier, the cost of a six-month vehicle entry permit to Afghanistan for Tajik long-distance truck drivers had been 100.00 U.S. dollars plus state duty amounting to 90.00 U.S. dollars.  Now the cost of one-month vehicle entry permit to Afghanistan for Tajik haulers is 150.00 U.S. dollars plus state duty amounting to 30.00 U.S. dollars.

The three-month vehicle entry permit now costs 450.00 dollars plus state duty amounting to 90.00 U.S. dollars.  Besides, visa for driver  costs 130.00 U.S. dollars and 150.00 U.S. dollars are collected as duty for entry to Afghanistan.  “In all, we now have to pay 820.00 U.S. dollars for the three-month vehicle permit,” the haulers said.

The haulers have also sent a letter to the Tajik Foreign Ministry.  “A meeting with participation of representatives from the Ministry of Transport and the haulers themselves has been held and we have applied to our Afghan colleagues, asking to assist with solving the problem,” an official source at the Tajik MFA said.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Embassy in Dushanbe neither confirmed nor denied this information.  They have also refused to comment on reasons for raising fees for the vehicle entry permit.