Dushanbe, Tajikistan - Laser facility or more benign ?

During the Cold War considerable concern was expressed in the West about possible directed-energy systems at Saryshagan and Dushanbe that could damage satellites within their range and field of view. Subsequently, it was determined that the facility at Dushanbe was actually an Optical Tracking Facility. The Okno system, designed by the design bureau of the Krasnogorsk plant (Chief Designer N. Chernov), was built in Tajikistan approximately 16 kilometers from the Nurekskaya hydro power station. Western experts believed that this was a military laser system. According to the statement of Soviet officials, this was an optronic system for observation of space objects, similar to the American GEODSS.

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If I remeber correctly, Tom Clancy used this site in his book The Cardinal of the Kremlin