Is the Uzbekistan-Tajikistan dispute holding up NATO supplies to Afghanistan?
The ongoing dispute between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, which has halted rail traffic between the two countries, is causing some delay to NATO shipments into Afghanistan, Tajikistan says:
Uzbekistan prevents the transit of NATO cargo, going to Afghanistan, Vladimir Sobkalov, the first deputy head of Tajik railways (TR), informed Ferghana.Ru.
According to him, at the moment there are over 300 military cargo wagons, designated for anti-terrorist coalition troops in Afghanistan, which got stuck in Uzbekistan. According to Sobkalov, these are mainly oil and lubricants and, specifically, aviation kerosene.
If this story sounds familiar, it's because Tajikistan has made the same complaint before. It's hard not to blame them – it's a good way to gain international attention to their grievances in a dispute that would otherwise be pretty obscure. But then, as now, one wonders why, if it is a disruption to supplies in Afghanistan, that it's Tajikistan complaining, and not the U.S. or NATO. Reuters contacted a NATO spokesman in Afghanistan about Tajikistan's claims, and while the spokesman confirmed them, he didn't make it sound like NATO was too put out about it:
"We are aware there are some tensions in the area and that some carriages carrying NATO supplies are being held up," said Lieutenant-Colonel Goetz Hasske.
"We don't know anything about numbers, but it is not affecting logistics in the area," he said. "We have several border crossing points that we can use, and we may have to reroute some shipments. These are ongoing political tensions in the area."
So are NATO and the U.S. really not troubled by the delay, or are they keeping quiet in an attempt not to be seen as interfering in this dispute on the side of Tajikistan, and thus possibly offending Uzbekistan into cutting off the NDN altogether? Or, as seems most likely, a little of both?
Joshua Kucera, a senior correspondent, is Eurasianet's former Turkey/Caucasus editor and has written for the site since 2007.
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