| Batken conflict | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Kyrgyzstan Russia (material support) Uzbekistan (military support) |  Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Askar AkayevMyrzakan SubanovEsen Topoev Abdrakhman MamatalievAbdygul Chotbaev Colonel Stanislav Kholodkov | Juma NamanganiTohir Yoʻldosh | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Several hundred soldiers | More than 1,000 militants | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 32 civilians and soldiers killed | 1,150 militants killed | ||||||
TheBatken conflict (Kyrgyz:Баткен окуясы,romanized: Batken okuyasy,Russian:Баткенские события) was a period of armed clashes between militants of theIslamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and theArmed Forces of Kyrgyzstan, with support to the latter being provided by theUzbek Ground Forces. It was caused by incursions of IMU militants into Uzbek and Kyrgyz territory fromTajikistan and was in part, centered on the unilateral demarcation of theKyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan border byUzbekistan.[1]
In February 1999, the Uzbek capital ofTashkent experienceda series of explosions in an attempt on PresidentIslam Karimov's life, who then blamed it on radicalWahhabiIslamic Movement of Uzbekistan militants. According to the militants, their goal was to facilitate an overthrow of theUzbek government and President Karimov, after which the establishment of afully Islamic state inUzbekistan would follow.
In the summer of that year, IMU guerrilla rebels invaded theBatken Region ofKyrgyzstan (a region with an ethnically Uzbek majority). It was the IMU's first verifiable operation since it was established just a year before. Specifically, the city ofBarak, Kyrgyzstan was occupied by militant forces, with the surrounding area being controlled and blockaded by Uzbek forces. During the intrusion, the rebels took several people hostage, including a Japanesegeologist, who was eventually returned after theJapanese government paid a ransom. The rebels demanded that Kyrgyzstan provide safe passage for them to cross into Uzbekistan. On the eighth day of the conflict, Mayor Abdrakhman Mamataliev ofOsh along with 3 security officers were captured by militants in order to send a message to theBishkek authorities. They were in captivity for over a week until they were released on 13 August as a result of extensive negotiations and the extortion of a ransom, which included anAfghanistan-bound helicopter.[2][3]
On 24 August, defense ministerMyrzakan Subanov was dismissed from his post after Akayev and his government observed what his spokesman called a failure to "stabilize the situation."[4] Just four days later, Akayev appointedMajor GeneralEsen Topoev, a native of theBatken, as minister of defense. On 1 September,Russian Prime MinisterVladimir Putin and Kyrgyz Deputy Prime MinisterBoris Silaev met to discussRussia formally providing technical assistance to theKyrgyz Army in eliminating the militants. The government spent the next month concentrating their operations on the IMU militants throughout the mountains, utilizing air strikes and artillery shelling to help aide their advance. By 25 September, the Batken region was completely stripped of militants, with some retreating toTajikistan. The government then arrested over 70 civilians inBishkek who were suspected of having links with the IMU terrorists. The Kyrgyz and Uzbek governments agreed to confine the rebels in the mountains during the winter, in an attempt to ensure the disablement of the invading forces.
Following the conclusion of the conflict, the Uzbek government began the process of sealing its border with Kyrgyzstan, enacting measures such as constructing a barbed wire fence and creating a 2-meter (6.67-foot) fence throughout 1999 and 2000. The Uzbek government also hinted at a military intervention in the country, with defense ministerHikmatulla Tursunov declaring that theUzbek Armed Forces stand ready to launch attacks on rebel sanctuaries in both "nearby" and "other places".[5] The conflict was a key factor in political debates between the government ofAmangeldy Muraliyev andopposition, eventually incorporating itself into that year's parliamentary andpresidential elections.[6] TheBatken Region was created as a response to IMU activities.[7] Kyrgyzstan accused Uzbekistan of using the conflict to seize large areas of agricultural land that was loaned to Uzbekistan during the Soviet period for temporary usage.[8]
The conflict also had a major impact on the international community, who collectively put pressure onTajikistan to expel the IMU from the country, specifically theTavildara Valley where it is based. The IMU eventually abandoned the valley in late 1999 after persuasion from theIslamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan (IRPT).