Review: The article draws attention to the new topic of determining the institutional status of the National Army in the state-political system of Tajikistan. Of interest is the positioning of the army institute in the totality of the political institutions of the state and society, its evolution in the process of depoliticization of power structures. It is established that the institute of the Army of Tajikistan has evolved from a political institution during the Civil war into an instrument of the policy of the peacetime authorities, and the actual power component of effectiveness does not fully correspond to the level of external threats. 30 years ago, on February 23, 1993, the armed forces of independent Tajikistan were born. On the anniversary date, speeches by the president, political and military figures, scientists are published, revealing the outstanding role of the army in saving the state during the difficult years of brutal political and military confrontation between secular patriotic and Islamist forces. However, the topic of the connection between the army and politics, the role of the army in politics is not in the focus of interest of the scientific community of Tajikistan, although addressing this issue is relevant in light of the rapid and dangerous changes in the military-political situation in the world and the Central Asian region. These circumstances determined the research question about the status of the Tajik army - it is a political institution or a policy tool, as well as the purpose and objectives of the publication – to reveal the conditions and process of institutionalization of the Tajik army, its functions and status as an institution of the state and society.

Keywords: armed forces, depoliticization, political institutions, tarmy as institution, army, Tadjikistan, political regime, political process, politics, state