Ukraine: Whether members of the Ukrainian army participated in peacekeeping activities in Tajikistan in December 1994 and, if so, the types of activities and whether they perpetuated any human rights abuses
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 5 December 2000 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | UKR35739.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ukraine: Whether members of the Ukrainian army participated in peacekeeping activities in Tajikistan in December 1994 and, if so, the types of activities and whether they perpetuated any human rights abuses, 5 December 2000, UKR35739.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3df4bebc18.html [accessed 25 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
No reports of members of the Ukrainian army participating in peacekeeping activities in Tajikistan in December 1994 could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
A November 1994 article by the Paris-based Institute for Security Studies Western European Union (WEU), a research organization that is answerable to an intergovernmental body, the Council of WEU, and which was created in order to assist member countries of the WEU "in their determination both to strengthen the European pillar of NATO and to provide an integrated Europe with a security and defence dimension," states:
A formal agreement on a 'collective' operation in Tajikistan signed in September 1993 obliges Russia and the Central Asian states of the CIS, apart from Turkmenistan, to dispatch military units to the region. ... In February 1994 the CIS role was formally extended when nine CIS defence ministers (excluding those from Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova) signed a document obliging each member state to send peacekeeping troops to Tajikistan (9).
The January 1995 issue of the International Peacekeeping News, referring to a 16 December 1994 Inter Press Service (IPS) report, states:
The UN Security Council has voted to deploy a 40-member UN Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT) for six months to monitor a cease-fire between the government and the Islamic opposition ...
The same January 1995 issue, referring to a 3 January 1995 Agence France-Presse (AFP) article, states:
Troop contributions to the UNMOT peacekeeping operation have been made by five former communist nations – Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Ukraine – as well as by Austria, Bangladesh, Jordan, Switzerland and Hungary. The peacekeeping force is to monitor the provisions of the cease-fire agreements signed between the government and the Islamic opposition forces. The mission will consist of 40 military personnel and 40 civilians. Russia already has approximately 15,000 peacekeepers deployed to the region.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Institute for Security Studies Western European Union [Paris]. November 1994. Roy Allison. "Peacekeeping in the Soviet Successor States."
International Peacekeeping News [Bradford, UK]. January 1995. Issue No. 5. "UN Agrees to Tajikistan PK Force. UNMOT Troop Contributors."
Additional Sources Consulted
Correspondence sent to three oral sources.
IRB databases
LEXIS/NEXIS
Internet sites including:
Amnesty International
Central Asia Monitor
Hokkaido University Slavic Research Centre
Institute for War and Peace Reporting
International Crisis Group
International Helsinki Federation
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
World News Connection
The Times of Central Asia
