Uzbekistan has pulled backed troops and military vehicles from a disputed segment of the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border, ending a weeklong standoff over the contested area.
The Kyrgyz state border guard service said the troop withdrawal took place early on March 26, a day after a meeting between Kyrgyz and Uzbek officials over the crisis.
The meeting had been initiated by the Uzbek side, the border guard service said.
On March 18, Uzbek authorities deployed troops, two armored personnel vehicles, and two military trucks near the border in Kyrgyzstan’s southwestern in Aksy district in Jalal-Abad province.
Kyrgyz authorities responded by sending troops and military equipment to the disputed area.
The majority of the twisting 1,314-kilometer-long Uzbek-Kyrgyz border is still undefined, and conflicts on and near border crossings are often violent. Several flare-ups in recent years have ended with people being shot dead.
