DUSHANBE, April 15, 2013, Asia-Plus – According to Russian media sources, the Border Service at Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) offers to suspend rail links with Tajikistan in order to address some shortcomings that were revealed by the Russian side.

Russian border service chief Vladimir Mochalov released an appropriate statement on Monday, Aril 15 following a meeting of the State Border Commission, presided over by Russia''s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, which took place at the Aksai railway station in the Astrakhan oblast on April 14.

"The Ministry of Transport of Russia along with Russian Railways proposed to submit to the Council for Rail Transport of the CIS countries a document aimed at suspending rail links with the Republic of Tajikistan in the existing form in order to address revealed shortcomings," Mochalov said at a State Border Commission''s meeting in Moscow.

Meanwhile, a protest rally, organized by the National Democratic Party, took place in Moscow on April 14.  People, mostly Russian nationalists, gathered to protest against a legislative draft to simplify the procedure of receiving the Russian citizenship and to demand of authorities to establish the visa regime with Central Asia and Transcaucasia countries.  Similar rallies reportedly took place in Barnaul, Syktyvkar, Ufa and some other Russian cities.