More than 1,000 Afghan soldiers flee to Tajikistan

dpa Dushanbe More than 1,000 Afghan soldiers have fled across the border to neighbouring Tajikistan, fearing for their lives as Taliban militants gain po...

dpa Dushanbe More than 1,000 Afghan soldiers have fled across the border to neighbouring Tajikistan, fearing for their lives as Taliban militants gain power following the departure of international troops from the country.The soldiers were admitted to Tajikistan on Sunday night as a sign of good relations between neighbours, according to Tajik border troops in Dushanbe.It was the largest number of Afghans to cross the border within the space of a day. Afghan government forces in Badakhshan have been crossing the border to escape the Taliban in recent days.Taliban militants are steadily seizing power in northern Afghanistan.They have taken control of a slew of districts and dramatically intensified their campaign ahead of the full withdrawal of US forces from the war-ravaged country.Tajik President Emomali Rahmon said he was concerned about tensions in the border region during a phone call with his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani.Tajikistan shares a 900-kilometre border with Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province.Tajikistan is still in control of the border, according to the border guards in Dushanbe. However, concerns have also been expressed by Russia about the situation.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov criticised the destabilisation in Afghanistan due to the withdrawal of the troops of the United States and its allies.On the question of whether additional forces would be sent to support Russian troops stationed in Tajikistan, Peskov said this was an issue for the Russian military and border guards to decide.However, he emphasized that Russian troops would not be deployed to Afghanistan.