OSCE concludes training course on sustained field operation capacity for Tajikistan’s border officers in Tursunzoda district

A four-week training course on sustained field operation capacity for border officers of Tajikistan’s Border Troops was completed on 8 April in the Tursunzoda District. The OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe in co-operation with Tajikistan’s Border Troops organized the course, which was funded by the European Union.

Twenty-five border officers serving along the border with Uzbekistan participated in the course. The participants enhanced their skills in military and topography map reading, first aid related to battlefield injuries, tactical patrolling, radio communications, national border regulations, gender awareness, risk assessment, patrol report writing, and survival techniques. Mountaineering drills were also included in the course. Tactical patrolling modules included lessons on national legislation and international human rights commitments pertaining to the rights and treatment of detainees and refugees.

Colonel Sherali Nazirov, Commander of the Border Detachment in the Tursunzoda District said that the partnership between the OSCE, the EU and the Border Troops brings positive results in protecting the state borders of Tajikistan. He added that the course on sustained field operation capacity helped enhance the skills and knowledge of border officers.

This training course is part of a project funded through the European Union’s Foreign Policy Instrument. The project aims to increase the professional capacity of both Tajikistan’s Border Troops and Afghan Border Services to better tackle illicit activities in border areas. The project also aims to strengthen the capacity of the Committee on Emergency Situations and Civil Defense to respond to natural disasters in border regions.