You're reading: Kommersant newspaper: Tajikistan puts Russian military base rental fees at $250 million a year

MOSCOW - Tajikistan would like Russia to pay at least $250 million in annual rent for the 201st military base, the Kommersant newspaper reported on July 12.

“The Tajik authorities have estimated the presence of the 201st base
on their territory at at least $250 million a year,” the newspaper said,
citing a Tajik source close to the two countries’ negotiations about
extending the facility’s rent.

According to Kommersant’s source in the Russian General Staff,
Tajikistan put forth more than 20 “demands that are unclear and
unacceptable for Russia.”

They deal with a timeframe for the base’s deployment and Dushanbe’s
request to receive Land Force military hardware and ammunition for it
free of charge, the source said.

Difficulties also surround the placement of facilities owned by the
670th aviation group and 303rd helicopter squadron at the Ayni airfield,
he said.

For his part, the newspaper’s source in the Russian Defense
Ministry’s central office declined either to confirm or deny the figure
of $250 million because, he said, Russia had not yet received any Tajik
draft of their base rent agreement.

A member of Russia’s delegation to the talks with Tajikistan said he
was outraged at what he described as Dushanbe’s “clearly excessive”
demands.

“It concerns not only Russia’s interests, but security in CSTO
[Collective Security Treaty Organization] countries in general. This is
the aim of Russian troops’ presence in Central Asia. These inflated,
unjustified figures cannot serve as a foundation for constructive talks
and cause our surprise,” he said.

A dispute over the terms for the deployment of 7,000 Russian soldiers
in Tajikistan erupted last week after Russia accused the Tajik
authorities of putting forward unacceptable conditions to prolong the
facility’s rent and stopped funding it, Kommersant said.

The Tajik Defense Ministry, for its part, dismissed Russia’s stance on this matter as “politically inappropriate”.

“Even the two countries’ defense ministers, who met during a session
of the CIS Council in Kaliningrad, proved unable to break this
deadlock,” the newspaper said.