Kyrgyzstan Receives Two Villages From Uzbekistan And Proposes Land Swap With Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan have completed the next stage of demarcating their state border. Two border villages that previously belonged to Uzbekistan have become part of Kyrgyzstan’s Batken Region, Orda.kz reports.

According to Kyrgyz presidential spokesperson Askat Alagozov, the villages of Chongara and Tash-Tobo, which were part of Uzbekistan’s Fergana Region, have come under Bishkek’s jurisdiction.

About 2,500 people live in the two settlements, most of them ethnic Kyrgyz. Local authorities will register the population, after which residents will officially receive Kyrgyz citizenship.

In return, Kyrgyzstan transferred equivalent land plots in the border area to Uzbekistan.

Tashkent and Bishkek also exchanged 236 hectares of land for new infrastructure. The move will allow a direct road to be built between the villages of Sai and Tayan. The new route is expected to solve a long-standing logistics problem in Batken Region, the publication notes. It will shorten the route from Aidarken to Batken from the current 225-kilometre detour to 55 kilometres.

The changes may also affect the border with Kazakhstan. Kyrgyzstan has proposed that Astana exchange equivalent plots near the city of Tokmok. The proposal concerns an 800-metre section of road.

If Kazakhstan approves the initiative, Bishkek will be able to launch a toll road project about 150 kilometres long. The road would connect Almaty Street in the Kyrgyz capital with the city of Kemin.

Original author: Eva Golovintseva

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