Tajikistan’s officials report 17 armed clashes with traffickers along Afghanistan border, underscoring rising security risks and increased narcotics seizures last year overall, The Caspian Post reports, citing Khaama Press.

Tajikistan’s counter-narcotics chief Zafar Samad said security forces recorded 17 armed clashes with Afghan drug traffickers along the border during 2025.

He said two Tajik security personnel and ten Afghan nationals were killed during these confrontations as violence linked to cross-border trafficking intensified.

Authorities also reported a sharp increase in drug seizures, with more than 2,700 kilograms of narcotics intercepted along the frontier during the year.

Officials noted that clashes rose significantly compared with the previous year, when only six armed incidents were recorded and fewer traffickers were killed.

Samad added that Afghan narcotics trafficking routes through Tajikistan toward other regions remain active despite heightened security operations.

The long and mountainous Tajikistan-Afghanistan border has long been a major route for narcotics trafficking from Afghanistan toward Central Asia, Russia and Europe.

Regional governments and international agencies have repeatedly warned that economic hardship and instability help sustain trafficking networks and cross-border criminal activity.

Officials say continued cooperation and stronger border control measures are essential to curb trafficking and reduce violence along one of Central Asia’s most sensitive frontiers.