International terrorism and its impact on the security of Tajikistan within the framework of the post-Soviet space

The present article is dedicated to a comprehensive analysis of the impact of international terrorism on the security of the Republic of Tajikistan in the context of the post-Soviet space. Special attention is given to the institutionalization of the fight against terrorism, the formation of legal foundations for countering extremism, and the role of the Republic of Tajikistan within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). The research covers both historical prerequisites related to the civil war of the 1990s and contemporary challenges, including cyber extremism, youth radicalization, transnational drug trafficking, and instability in Afghanistan. The paper reveals the main directions of Tajikistan's anti-terrorism policy, including national strategies, legal initiatives, international cooperation, and participation in joint CSTO exercises. Particular attention is paid to threats related to digital technologies, labor migration, and the activities of banned organizations such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and the Islamic State. The scientific novelty of the article lies in the comprehensive assessment of the transformation of terrorist threats and the institutional response to them. It concludes that there is a need for further deepening of intergovernmental interaction and improvement of preventive security mechanisms in Central Asia. Both theoretical and empirical sources were used: legal acts of the Republic of Tajikistan, documents from international organizations (CSTO, SCO, UN), analytical reports, scientific articles, and data from specialized research centers. The methodological basis consisted of general scientific methods such as analysis, synthesis, induction, and deduction, as well as special methods – comparative legal, geopolitical, and systemic approaches. The study established that international terrorism has a significant impact on the security of the Republic of Tajikistan, especially in the context of instability at its southern borders and against the backdrop of the transformation of terrorist threats into hybrid forms. The analysis showed that since the collapse of the USSR and up to the present time, Tajikistan has been consistently developing legal, institutional, and international mechanisms to counter terrorism. Effective measures include the formation of a legal framework, the adoption of national strategies to combat extremism, participation in the CSTO, and the conduct of regular joint exercises. In addition, key internal and external factors contributing to radicalization were identified, including mass labor migration, insufficient religious literacy, active propaganda of extremism in the digital environment, and the influence of unstable Afghanistan.