Border disputes are the only reason for border insecurity
Hama News Agency: Border disputes and tensions have been one of the major and stable factors of tussle and conflict in Central Asia, which has staggered the stability and security of the region. Border tensions between these countries were created after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and have remained until now. In the past thirty years, border conflicts have caused human casualties and have severely affected the relations between the countries of this region. In addition to intra-regional incompatibilities caused by the geography of Central Asia, the neighborhood of this regions with Afghanistan as a challenging and crisis-causing country that has a high capacity to generate tension with its neighbors has added to the challenges of the region.
Turkmenistan and Afghanistan have about 800 kilometers of common border, and a large part of the border between the two countries is located on the desert, river and mountains. From the beginning of the country of Turkmenistan, the fear of the leaders of this country from neighboring Afghanistan is on the issue of terrorism and control of border challenges. The proximity of the two countries has caused concern for Turkmen leaders, because Afghanistan has always experienced instability and lack of complete territorial sovereignty in recent decades. In fact, that’s where the fear comes from that instability and insecurity will not remain within the countries in any way and there is always the possibility of its overflow and contagion from the unstable country to the countries of the region in the first step and in the next step even to the international and global levels. What is clear is that the crisis in Afghanistan affects not only the people of this country but also the entire region. Instability, drugs, human trafficking, terrorism and religious radicalism are just a few of the countless cases that plague the neighboring countries of Afghanistan and Central Asia.
Although Turkmenistan has not faced any serious threat from terrorist groups along its borders, the resurgence of the Taliban in the last two years has added to the worries of Central Asian countries, especially Turkmenistan, for two reasons:
A: The inability of the Taliban group to establish and expand territorial sovereignty, and organize security affairs
In the past two years, the Taliban have not been seriously fighting against the Khorasan branch of ISIS, al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the Ansarullah Movement (Tajik Taliban) and the Islamic Jihad Movement, which are active, present and have physical movement in Afghanistan and along the border with Central Asian countries. Groups such as Jundal Khalifa and the Islamic Movement of East Turkestan, which have a history of presence in Afghanistan, especially in the northern regions of the country, and a history of planning destructive operations in Central Asia, are also considered a serious threat to the security of Central Asia and the region.
B: Turkmenistan’s inability to fully control its borders with Afghanistan
Turkmens are not able to fully guard the borders due to not having sufficient forces, trained and equipped with the necessary tools to protect their borders with Afghanistan. Although Turkmenistan has adopted a neutral foreign policy since 1995 (for this purpose and to pursue economic goals, this country accepted the representative of the Taliban in Ashgabat), but in the last few years, Turkmenistan has been trying to expand its defensive fortifications on the border with Afghanistan. Last year, it was reported that there was an exchange of fire and a conflict between the Taliban forces and the Turkmen border guards; But the Taliban did not approve it. This event showed that the security along the border of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan is fragile.
Another thing that increases the possibility of tension is the location of the border of the two countries on the Amu Sea. According to geopoliticians, blue borders are known as the most unstable and unstable types of borders. According to them, with the increase of rainfall and the water level, there is a possibility of changing the water path, in which case, it becomes difficult to determine the borders, and the upstream countries can use this opportunity to change the borders, which will fuel disputes.
Although Turkmenistan is the first country among the Central Asian countries that accepted the diplomatic representation of the Taliban in Ashgabat, it did not take long for the Taliban forces to clash with the border guards of that country. This event showed that the conflicting and tension-causing issues that raise the possibility of disrupting the relations between the two countries still exist. On the other hand, the seriousness of the threat posed by the radical groups in Afghanistan, especially the Khorasan branch of ISIS, has worried the countries of the region, including Turkmenistan, which can also cause tension in the relations between the two sides. Border disputes and tensions are one of the major and stable factors of the conflict. And the conflict in Central Asia has shaken the stability and security of the region. Border tensions between these countries were created after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and have remained until now. In the past thirty years, border conflicts have caused human casualties and have severely affected the relations between the countries of this region. In addition to intra-regional incompatibilities caused by the geography of Central Asia, the neighborhood of this region with Afghanistan as a challenging and crisis-causing country that has a high capacity to generate tension with its neighbors has added to the challenges of the region.
Translated by: M.Yassen Salahi
