Farkhor Air Base is a military air base located near the town of Farkhor in

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

, southeast of the capital

Dushanbe Dushanbe is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Tajikistan. , Dushanbe had a population of 1,564,700, with this population being largely Tajiks, Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe, and from 1929 to 1961 as St ...

. It was planned to be operated by the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

in collaboration with the Tajik Air Force. Farkhor is

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

's first military base outside its territory.

History

In 1996–97, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) started negotiations with Tajikistan to use the Farkhor Air Base to transport high-altitude military supplies to the Afghan Northern Alliance, service their helicopters and gather intelligence. At that time, India operated a small military hospital in the Farkhor region. The hospital at Farkhor was used to treat Afghan Northern Alliance members injured in fighting with the

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, including military leader Ahmed Shah Massoud, who was rushed there after a suicide attack against him. In 2002, India acknowledged that it was setting up an air base in Farkhor. It was secured with assistance from Russia. The airbase was in a dilapidated condition and was not used since the 1980s. The Indian Government awarded a $10 million tender to a private builder in 2003 to restore the airbase by 2005. After the builder defaulted, the Border Roads Organisation stepped in to complete the work. In 2006, India was considering deploying a squadron of Mikoyan MiG-29 aircraft at the base. Subsequently the base was operationalized by 2007.

Strategic location and geopolitical implications

The Farkhor Air Base would have given the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the armed forces, military forces of the India, Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Ar ...

more depth and range and is a tangible manifestation of India's move to project its power in Central Asia.

References

{{Reflist Tajik Air Force Aviation in Tajikistan Airports in Tajikistan Indian Overseas Military bases Indian Air Force bases Khatlon Region Research and Analysis Wing Military installations in Tajikistan

History

Strategic location and geopolitical implications

See also

References