President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoev declared that an Uzbek soldier heroically died on the border with Afghanistan on September 26, AKIpress reports.

“An attempt of border trespassing was made yesterday. A drug dealer tried to cross the border…One of our soldiers heroically died during service,” Mirziyoev said during a meeting with citizens of Namangan, adding that the deceased serviceman was born in Namangan.

Mirziyoev emphasized that the Uzbek army “will defend the border with weapons” in case of need and mentioned that Tashkent’s stance on border protection is inviolable and steadfast.