The territorial demarcation between the Central Asian countries has been a source of various threats and conflicts for decades. The inability to find mutually acceptable solutions has long been a factor constraining regional cooperation and development.
While compromise options were worked out with China and Kazakhstan in the late 1990s and early 2000s, leaders of Kyrgyzstan could not come to an agreement with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan or did not make sufficient efforts. President Sadyr Zhaparov managed to change the situation and start the process of delimitation of borders with neighbors. By showing political will, he was able to initiate a negotiation process with Tashkent and later with Dushanbe.
Experts note that the difficulty lay in the fact that there were no borders as such between the Central Asian republics. Since ancient times, the peoples have lived side by side and for centuries have tried to maintain peace and harmony. During the Soviet Union, the borders between the countries were administrative, in other words, nominal and absolutely transparent. Serious division of territories with the organization of checkpoints, barbed wire around the perimeter and deployment of armed forces began in the 1990s. Disputed areas appeared, which were labeled differently depending on the year of issue of geographical maps. This was a cause for disagreements and misunderstandings.
Bishkek and Tashkent found common ground only after the elites changed and new leaders took over. Presidents Sadyr Zhaparov and Shavkat Mirziyoyev established a bilateral intergovernmental commission through political and diplomatic means, based on respect for national interests, trust, respect and friendship, which worked out a version of the agreement on border demarcation that suited both countries. This included an exchange of territories, and the Kempir-Abad reservoir is now managed by a joint Kyrgyz-Uzbek enterprise, which regulates the filling of the bowl and the release from the dam, taking into account the needs and interests of the inhabitants of the two countries.
What happened after that? Trade turnover is growing between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, additional checkpoints have been opened for citizens and cargo. The borders have been defined, and now there are no gray areas and pain points.
With Tajikistan, the process of disengagement was much more difficult, the search for compromise options was complicated by the fact that there were conflicts in the disputed territories, with casualties among both military and civilians. Nevertheless, both sides were determined to settle all disagreements through political and diplomatic means. After the presidents agreed on the principal positions, the negotiation marathon began, which was attended by the Chairmen of the State Committees of the National Securities of the two states - Kamchybek Tashiev and Saimumin Yatimov. In comments to Kabar News Agency in the fall of 2024, Secretary of the Security Council of Kyrgyzstan Marat Imankulov noted that Bishkek and Dushanbe were close to resolving all disputed issues.
“We all know that both in April 2021 and September 2022 there were conflicts on the border with Tajikistan. Yes, the terrain there is very difficult and in some places the border runs through vegetable gardens, between houses in one settlement. Naturally, this created tension. Now we are reaching the finish line. Leaders of the countries, our President Sadyr Zhaparov and leader of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon have met several times on these issues, and at the last negotiations they agreed to speed up the process to put an end to it in the nearest future and sign the agreement,” said Marat Imankulov.
Having resolved their differences between themselves and created bridges of friendship on their borders, the Central Asian countries will be able to start creating a large space of cooperation based on trust and respect. When there are no disagreements between neighbors, it is possible to focus on solving common tasks of regional development and implementation of joint economic projects.
And already in December 2024, Head of the State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan Kamchybek Tashiev and his colleague Saimumin Yatimov, following a meeting of government delegations in Batken, made important statements that Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan had been waiting for many years, especially the residents of border areas.
“I can responsibly state that today is a historic moment of harmonization of borders. What remains is the legal formalization, ratification by the parliaments of the two countries and signing by the heads of state. I think, just in a few months, we will finalize the delimitation of our borders, and I want to express my gratitude to all members of the intergovernmental commission,” Tashiev noted.
In turn, his Tajik counterpart Saimumin Yatimov noted that the working groups were instructed to begin the process of finalizing the final documents.
According to experts, the successful conclusion of the negotiations will reduce tensions in the border areas, which is an important factor for ensuring security and preventing possible conflicts. Reaching an agreement on the border creates a platform for further development of bilateral cooperation, including coordination in international organizations.
The agreements will provide an incentive for investment in border areas, including the construction of roads, logistics centers and other facilities. By creating bridges of friendship at the borders, Central Asian countries can begin to build a large space of cooperation based on trust and respect. When neighbors agree, it is possible to focus on common regional development tasks.