Russia began evacuating more than 500 people from Afghanistan on Wednesday while at the same time holding military exercises for its tank forces in neighboring Tajikistan.
The US exit from Afghanistan is a security headache for Moscow, which sees Central Asia as part of its southern defensive flank and fears extremism spreading into the region.
Russia is holding a month of military exercises in Tajikistan, a Moscow ally, and has reinforced its base there.
Russia's Defense Ministry said it had deployed a number of T-72 tanks to Tajikistan's mountains and practiced long-range firing at moving targets, the Interfax news agency reported.
The ministry also said it was evacuating more than 500 people from Afghanistan, including Russians and citizens of Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.
The operation is involving four military transport aircraft and was ordered by President Vladimir Putin, it said.
The Russian government plans to request flights out of Afghanistan in September for Afghan students who are planning to study in Russia, the embassy said on Tuesday.
