DUSHANBE, Tadzhikistan — A provisional ruling council asserted authority Friday in the strife-wracked Central Asian republic of Tadzhikistan and Russian troops began playing an active role to prevent more bloodshed.
The Russian military commander in the Tadzhik capital Dushanbe made an extraordinary appearance on local television to announce the creation of a government council and to spell out a new role for Moscow’s forces in the ex-Soviet republic.
