France and Tajikistan

Not normally two countries you would think of in the same breath, but since 9/11, France has a modest presence in Central Asia. France has had a military presence there to support Frence troops in Afghanistan, but diplomatic and economic interests are following.

France is increasing its military strength in Tajikistan, after reducing it last year.

Extra corps of French military and fighters is to be returned to Tajikistan, a REGNUM correspondent is told in the French embassy in Dushanbe. Within next few days three Mirage fighters and extra flight personnel over 100 people in number are to be deployed in Dushanbe.

At present time, several military transport aircrafts of French Air Forces and over 100 people of flight and service personnel are deployed in the Airport of Dushanbe.

Here is some of the political history between the two countries since 9/11, according to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Our political dialogue with Tajikistan has improved since 2001. An agreement signed on 8 December 2001 authorizing the stationing of French forces allowed for the immediate deployment of an air transport group of about a hundred men at Dushanbe airport in the context of Operation Herakles.

At the same time, a diplomatic office was opened in Tajikistan. Following President Rakhmonov’s official visit to Paris in December 2002, it was turned into a fully operating Embassy. Military and defence cooperation was initiated and formalized by a Defence cooperation agreement signed on 30 December 2002, during the visit of Ms. Michèle Alliot-Marie, Minister of Defence, to Dushanbe. An aeronautical engineering detachment took part in the study carried out on the Dushanbe airport runway.

President Rakhmonov made a working visit to Paris on 10 and 11 October 2005, on the sidelines of the Tajikistan Days at UNESCO. He was received by President Chirac and had meetings with the Minister of Defence, Ms. Michèle Alliot-Marie, and the Minister Delegate for Industry, Mr. François Loos.

France is not a major player in Central Asia, especially compared to Russia and China, but it seems to be getting a foot in the door.

Christopher Langton is an analyst at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies. He told RFE/RL that relations between France and the Central Asian countries have "accelerated" since the beginning of the U.S.-led war on terrorism, but are not something new. He said the French military presence in Central Asia also reflects France's economic interests in the region.

"France has always had a latent interest, a commercial interest, in Central Asia -- not just in Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan, but also particularly in Turkmenistan. There are French commercial interests there, including oil and gas, [just as there are] with many other Western European nations, Russia, and the U.S.," Langton said. "In Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, France of course has played a key role in the military operations which are being mounted from those countries into Afghanistan."

He continued: "[France] is trying to develop its relationship with Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan for commercial reasons. I am not aware of particular reasons, but my work in the area of oil and gas suggests that French oil and gas companies do have interests in pipelines which may be constructed from the gas and oil fields of those countries in directions which have not been explored before, such as the east towards China and possibly towards the Indian Ocean, even possibly through Afghanistan."