Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan called on their countries’ troops to “fall back” after border clashes.

The Kyrgyz authorities have announced a ceasefire on the border with Tajikistan, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports. Earlier in the day, the Kyrgyz Ministry of Health reported that 31 people had died as a result of a border conflict with Tajikistan that began on September 14 as a result of armed clashes between the two sides.

On September 14, the National Security Service of Kyrgyzstan reported a skirmish at the border between Kyrgyz and Tajik border guards, specifically in Bulakbashi, Batka district, noting that the border guards of the two countries took up combat positions and the Tajik border guards ignored the legitimate demands of the Kyrgyz side to leave the region. The reason for the frequent clashes from time to time due to the fact that the borders between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were not clearly demarcated after the collapse of the USSR, with pockets on both sides.