CSTO says Tajik-Afghan border security still ‘complicated’

The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) says the security situation along the Tajik-Afghan border remains “complicated,” citing ongoing concerns over militant activity in northern Afghanistan.

Viktor Vasilyev, chairman of the CSTO Permanent Council, said this week that instability in Central Asia continues to stem from threats posed by militants operating near Afghanistan’s northern border region.

Speaking at a forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, Vasilyev said member states plan to intensify joint efforts to counter militant groups that, according to Tajik and Chinese authorities, have carried out attacks on Chinese-backed business interests and other sporadic cross-border incidents affecting Tajikistan. Afghanistan’s ruling authorities have expressed regret over such incidents, but he said the security situation remains fragile in remote border areas.

“Despite Russia’s and several Central Asian countries’ efforts to establish contacts with the current authorities in Kabul, the security situation remains complicated,” Vasilyev said, calling it the CSTO’s main concern in the region, according to the Russian state news agency TASS.

He added that the bloc plans to expand coordinated operations, including efforts to “neutralize militant and extremist groups” that he said continue to accumulate along Afghanistan’s northern borders. He also described reported shelling of Tajik territory from Afghanistan as a “particular concern.”

The CSTO, which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Armenia, has previously supported Tajikistan through military equipment and joint exercises aimed at strengthening border security along its 1,200-kilometer frontier with Afghanistan.

However, Armenia has suspended its participation in the alliance, citing dissatisfaction over CSTO inaction during past conflicts with Azerbaijan, and has instead pursued closer ties with Europe and the United States. The issue of Armenia’s status is expected to be discussed at the ongoing forum in St. Petersburg.

Vasilyev, a veteran Russian Foreign Ministry official, assumed the rotating CSTO chairmanship in January and is set to remain in the position until the end of 2026.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly stated that Afghan territory will not be used against any country and has assured that it will not allow any armed group to operate from Afghan soil against neighboring states.