BATKEN, Kyrgyzstan -- Kyrgyz and Tajik military units have begun withdrawing from a disputed section of the two countries' border.
A spokeswoman for the Kyrgyz Border Guard Service, Gulmira Borubaeva, said on January 29 that the pullback started the night before after Kyrgyz-Tajik talks succeeded in outlining a withdrawal schedule.
Borubaeva said the withdrawal will last several days, after which only the regular border guards on both sides will remain.
The two Central Asian states brought additional forces to the area, near Kyrgyzstan's southern Batken region, earlier this month amid tensions following a shooting incident there.
Several Kyrgyz and Tajik border guards and one Kyrgyz police officer were injured.
The incident was sparked by Kyrgyzstan's construction of a new highway at a disputed site near the border.
A spokeswoman for the Kyrgyz Border Guard Service, Gulmira Borubaeva, said on January 29 that the pullback started the night before after Kyrgyz-Tajik talks succeeded in outlining a withdrawal schedule.
Borubaeva said the withdrawal will last several days, after which only the regular border guards on both sides will remain.
The two Central Asian states brought additional forces to the area, near Kyrgyzstan's southern Batken region, earlier this month amid tensions following a shooting incident there.
Several Kyrgyz and Tajik border guards and one Kyrgyz police officer were injured.
The incident was sparked by Kyrgyzstan's construction of a new highway at a disputed site near the border.
