Russia sends new tanks to base in Tajikistan, practices missile defence

FILE PHOTO: Russian, Kazakh and Belarusian service members line up during military drills carried out by the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) at the Harb-Maidon training ground, located near the Tajik-Afghan border in the Khatlon region, Tajikistan October 23, 2021. REUTERS/Didor Sadulloev/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Monday it was reinforcing its military base in Tajikistan with 30 new tanks and that its forces at the facility had carried out exercises with missile defence systems, highlighting Moscow's concern about turmoil in Afghanistan.

The possibility of Islamist militants in Afghanistan infiltrating Tajikistan and other former Soviet republics in Central Asia is a worry for Moscow, which views the region as a defensive buffer to its south.