Tajikistan Country Profile

Here's a succinct profile of Tajikistan compiled by the BBC:

Tajikistan country profile A former Soviet republic, Tajikistan plunged into civil war almost as soon  as it became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991. A rugged, mountainous country, with lush valleys to the south and north, it is Central Asia's poorest nation. OVERVIEW Tajiks are the country's largest ethnic group, with Uzbeks making up a quarter  of the population, over half of which is employed in agriculture and just one-fifth  in industry. Nearly half of Tajikistan's population is under 14 years of age. The five-year civil war between the Moscow-backed government and the Islamist-led  opposition, in which up to 50,000 people were killed and over one-tenth of the  population fled the country, ended in 1997 with a United Nations-brokered peace  agreement.  The Tajik language is very close to Persian, spoken in Iran, and to Dari, spoken  in Afghanistan. The country's economy has never really recovered from the civil war, and poverty is  widespread. Almost half of Tajikistan's GDP is earned by migrants working abroad,  especially in Russia, but the recession in 2009 threatened that income. The country is also dependent on oil and gas imports. Economic hardship is seen as a contributing to a renewed interest in Islam - including  more radical forms - among young Tajiks. Tajikistan has been accused by its neighbors of tolerating the presence of training   camps for Islamist rebels on its territory, an accusation which it has strongly denied. Tajikistan has relied heavily on Russian assistance to counter continuing security  problems and cope with the dire economic situation. Russian forces guarded sections  of the border with Afghanistan until mid-2005 when their withdrawal was completed  and the task handed over to Tajik border guards. Skirmishes with drug smugglers crossing illegally from Afghanistan occur regularly,  as Tajikistan is the first stop on the drugs route from there to Russia and the West. In October 2004 Russia formally opened a military base in Dushanbe where several  thousand troops will be stationed. It also took back control over a former Soviet space  monitoring centre at Nurek. These developments were widely seen as a sign of  Russia's wish to counter increased US influence in Central Asia. ·         Population: 7 million (UN, 2010) ·         Capital: Dushanbe ·         Area: 143,100 sq km (55,251 sq miles) ·         Major languages: Tajik, Uzbek, Russian ·         Major religion: Islam ·         Life expectancy: 65 years (men), 70 years (women) (UN) ·         Monetary unit: 1 Tajik somoni = 100 dirams ·         Main exports: Aluminum, electricity, cotton, fruit, textiles ·         GNI per capita: US $700 (World Bank, 2009) ·         Internet domain: .tj ·         International dialing code: +992