Russia warns of IS invasion in Central Asia

Russian intelligence on Wednesday warns of an increased risk of Taliban or Islamic State fighters invading Central Asia.

FSB director Alexander Bortnikov said in comments carried by Russian news agencies that a concentration of Taliban fighters, some of whom had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, at Afghanistan’s northern border make the risk of invasion tangible.

Afghanistan shares a porous border with the former Soviet republics of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan that has been a source of drugs coming into Russia and is a longstanding worry of Moscow’s.

Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month called the situation in Afghanistan “close to critical” and urged other ex-Soviet nations to be prepared to act together to repel a possible attack.

— AP