DUSHANBE, September 14, 2011, Asia-Plus -- The U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe trained 15 Tajik and Afghan border guards in border and immigration control.

According to the U.S. Embassy, these training courses are implemented by IOM within the framework of the ongoing supplemental assistance project for the Khorog Border Guard Training Center, which is funded by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).  The training was conducted at the Khorog Border Guard Training Center, and included 10 border police officers from the Afghan National Border Police and 5 officers from the Department of Border Forces of Tajikistan.

The training covered the basic tenets of border security, cross border cooperation, visa policy, detection of fraudulent documents, combating human trafficking, and anti-terrorism. Participants received certificates of completion at the closing ceremony on August 29.

In the words of one of the Afghan Border Police participants, “Such trainings are very useful, particularly because we can share experiences with Tajik counterparts and learn best practices in further work related activities.”

The United States Government is committed to continuing its support and assistance to the Tajik law enforcement community.  The INL section of the U.S. Embassy has cooperated with Tajikistan’s law enforcement agencies since 1992 to enhance border security, strengthen rule of law, and combat drug trafficking.