India reconstructs Tajikistan's Ayni aerodrome

Dushanbe: Tajik authorities are planning to move aircraft of the French Air Force which are deployed in Dushanbe to the Ayni aerodrome, which is rented by Russian servicemen and being reconstructed using funds from Russia, the Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta has said attributing to the Russian Defence Ministry.
The report said that according to the head of the Russian Defence Ministry’s quartering department, army Gen Anatoliy Grebenyuk, the Tajik aerodrome is in the composition of No 201 Russian military unit deployed in Tajikistan.
"The construction of structures at the Ayni air base near Dushanbe is at its final stage, and we are planning to complete it next year," the general said.
However, if, as expected, French Mirages [fighters] are redeployed, it will be the first case in Central Asia when aircraft of NATO and the Russian Air Force will be deployed at one military airdrome.
In the meantime, the Tajik Defence Ministry denied rumours about the redeployment of the French Mirages to the Ayni aerodrome.
"First, it is not Russian specialists who are reconstructing the military aerodrome, but specialists from India, and they are using their own funds," a representative of the Defence Ministry said. "Second, there are too many rumours around the Ayni aerodrome. At the beginning they claimed that Indian military contingent would be deployed there, and now they say French ones. This aerodrome is a property of Tajikistan, and it is up to the Tajik government and the Defence Ministry to decide who will be deployed there after the reconstruction.
According the Tajik Defence Ministry representative, at present, specialists from India are continuing the reconstruction of the Ayni aerodrome, which is a strategic military facility of Tajikistan.
13/09/07 Avesta website, Dushanbe/EurasiaNet, NY

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Categories: Airports Sep 2007, Foreign Sep 2007