
Tajikistan
Country Spotlight
Tajikistan does not possess nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons and is party to relevant nonproliferation treaties and organizations. Like other nations in Central Asia, Tajikistan faces nonproliferation challenges shaped by its Soviet legacy and porous borders, raising concern of the potential for smuggling of WMD-related materials.
See Tajikistan's performance in
Region Former Soviet Union
1,000,000 Metric tons of uranium ore processed annually by the Vostokredmet facility at its height
54.8 Million tons of radioactive waste (tailings) from Soviet era mining activities
$6.5 Million in assistance provided by IAEA for projects such as uranium waste disposal
Nuclear
- Pursuing the refurbishment and reactivation of never-activated Argus nuclear research reactor in Dushanbe with Russian and Chinese assistance
- Inherited major uranium mining and processing site, the Vostochnyy Rare Metal Industrial Association (Vostokredmet) in Buston (fmr. Chkalovsk). Currently inactive, Tajikistan has shown interest in its reactivation
- Has taken steps and received international support from U.S., Russia, and others to improve border security in prevention of smuggling of nuclear materials


Tutorial on Nuclear and Radiological Security
Biological
- Retains a still-active regional Anti-Plague (AP) facility in Dushanbe. There is no evidence that it participated in Soviet Biological Weapons research
- Researchers at the AP facility destroyed their pathogen cultures during the civil war to prevent their use as biological weapons if seized by warring factions
- Party to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC)

Tutorial on Biological Weapons Nonproliferation
Tajikistan Overview
Missile
- Does not possess any ballistic missiles and lacks the domestic capability to produce them
- Operated a facility during the USSR that produced rocket motors for Soviet strategic missiles
- Party to Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation
Overview of The CNS Missile and SLV Launch Databases

Tutorial on Missiles and Other WMD Delivery Systems
Chemical
- Tajikistan has no known chemical weapons
- Possesses industrial capability to produce precursors for industrial use but has no intention of doing so
- Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)

Tutorial on Chemical Weapons Nonproliferation

NTI Tutorials
Treaties and Regimes Memberships
Analysis
Tajikistan
Sam Nunn Discusses US-Russia Relations on Bloomberg TV
Sam Nunn, co-founder and co-chair of NTI and former U.S. Senator from Georgia, spoke with Bloomberg’s David Westin on “Bloomberg Markets: Balance of Power,” on January 29, 2019. Sam Nun commented on the state of U.S. relations with Russia.
Tajikistan Overview

NIS Nuclear Trafficking Collection

Education Center