Afghan, Pakistani Conflicts Spilling Into Central Asian States?

Afghan, Pakistani Conflicts Spilling Into Central Asian States?

From The Christian Science Monitor:

Dushanbe, Tajikistan - A spate of militant clashes in Tajikistan may indicate that the conflicts in Afghanistan and Pakistan are spilling beyond their borders – a top concern for neighboring Central Asian nations and Russia.

The rise in violence comes as Pakistan wraps up an assault on militants in the north and Western forces intensify a campaign against insurgents in Afghanistan ahead of an Aug. 20 election. The offensives may be pushing foreigners fighting in either country to flee the conflict and return home.

Read more ....
http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0731/p06s04-wosc.html

It took the Communists almost 15 years to quell its Islamic insurgencies when the Soviet Union was first established at the beginning of the 20th century. The fact that the old animosities and religious/ethnic conflicts are coming back should not be surprised. Like Yugoslavia and the Caucasus, the Communists suppressed these historical conflicts, but when the Soviet Union fell so did the authority and resources that were used to enforce the "peace".

Expect things to "heat up" in Central Asia as the wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan also start to expand, and the bloodshed starts to get worse.