DUSHANBE, February 23, 2009, Asia-Plus  -- The National Army of Tajikistan was being formed in the 1990s while simultaneously fighting, Defense Minister Sherali Khairulloyev said in an interview with Stan TV on February 23.

According to him, neighboring countries were luckier, Stan TV said.  Turkestan Military District, for example, went to Uzbeks, and the most powerful grouping of the Central Asian Military District went to become core of the Military of Kazakhstan, Tajik minister was quoted as saying.

“In the meantime, civil war was flaring up in Tajikistan, and we failed to acquire units of Rifle and Motorized Division 201 that was deployed in Tajikistan,” Khairulloyev was cited as saying.

“Therefore, we started practically from scratch, on the basis of former school, on the basis of former vocational-technical school, former motor depot – only such facilities went to us and we are still rehabilitating and renovating them,” the minister said.

“We are building our army by analogy with the former Soviet one; however, our cadets are studying at military in schools in other countries as well -- China, India, and some European countries,” Khairulloyev said.

On the problems currently facing the Tajik national army, the minister noted that one of the most serious problems was shortage of skilled personnel.