Top Tajik diplomat Sirojiddin Muhriddin on March 2 met in Antalya, Turkiye with his Kyrgyz counterpart Jeenbek Kulubayev on the sidelines of the of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF) that took place there on March 1-3.

The Tajik MFA information department the parties discussed a range of issues related to bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, including the progress of work of the joint commission for delimitation and demarcation of the disputed stretches of the mutual border. 

At the same time, the two once again emphasized the interest of the parties in resolving border issues as soon as possible, based on the instructions of the top leadership of the two countries.

Recall, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced in Dushanbe on January 10 following discussions with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon that an agreement addressing the long-standing border dispute between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan is set to be signed in March this year.  The Turkish top diplomat’s visit to Kyrgyzstan the day prior reportedly also featured discussions on the impending agreement.

The long-standing border dispute between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan has poisoned relations between the two Central Asian nations since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, leading to frequent clashes along the common border in recent years.  Kyrgyzstan unilaterally closed its common border with Tajikistan after further border clashes that occurred on September 14-17, 2022.  Both sides reportedly lost over 100 people both military population and ordinary citizens in that incident.  During fierce armed confrontations, a lot of schools, mosques were destroyed in addition to the houses of civilians; administrative buildings were also attacked by fire.  When the border closed, official trade turnover plummeted to nothing. Smugglers continued to ply their wares across the border, however.