The visit of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to Dushanbe may be preparation for his trip to Moscow, Tajik experts believe.
Source: Sputnik Tajikistan (Russia)
The head of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian will arrive in Tajikistan in the coming days. This will be his first visit to Dushanbe as the leader of the Islamic Republic. It will last two days, during which he will be received by President Emomali Rahmon.
This meeting will be the second for the leaders of Tajikistan and Iran after Pezeshkian's inauguration. The first took place in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The Iranian side attaches great importance to this trip. Thus, on the eve of Pezeshkian's visit, a business delegation from Tehran will arrive in Dushanbe, headed by the head of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry; the parties intend to sign a large package of documents in the economic, trade and cultural spheres.
In addition, the opening of the Institute for Persian and Tajik Culture Studies is planned, as well as the resumption of the work of the Red Crescent Society Center.
Meanwhile, this will be Pezeshkian's first visit to a country on the Eurasian continent, which is not unprecedented in the history of Iranian leaders' trips: at one time, the former head of the republic, Ibrahim Raisi, also began his tour from Tajikistan.
Sputnik Tajikistan investigated what the new Iranian president will bring to Dushanbe.
Pezeshkian continues Raisi's way
Political scientists point out that Iran, being isolated, has always paid special attention to relations with Tajikistan, which is also a Persian-speaking country and has not changed its views on foreign policy over the years. According to Iran issues expert Qasem Bekmuhammad, although it was initially said that Pezeshkian, being a reformist, would continue the policy of Hassan Rouhani's government, which did not pay much attention to Tajikistan, it is obvious that the new Iranian president will adhere to Raisi's vector, whose priority was the eastern, especially neighboring and peripheral countries.
"For Dushanbe, Tehran's economic presence and its investments are of primary importance. Iran has managed to introduce new technologies in agriculture and industry, which Tajikistan needs so much. On the other hand, the security problems caused by recent events in the Middle East and the problems that still exist in Afghanistan, including the security threat due to terrorist organizations, create the basis for close cooperation between the parties," he said.
Iran needs Russia
Meanwhile, some experts call Pezeshkian's visit to Dushanbe and the meeting with Rahmon a kind of preparation for the Iranian leader's trip to Moscow, which will be followed by the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement between Russia and Iran.
According to senior expert on regional issues Muzaffar Alimov, after the recent events in the Middle East and the possible change in the situation in Afghanistan, which will directly affect the security of Iran and all of Central Asia, consultations with Tajikistan, Russia's strategic partner, are very important for Tehran.
"After the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, which was supported by Moscow and Tehran, a strategic danger loomed, and, most importantly, Iran became more vulnerable, and its need for Russia increased. At the same time, in the South Caucasus, where France, the United States, Israel, and Turkey have appeared, the Russian Federation needs Iran's cooperation," Alimov believes.
Thus, experts call Tajikistan a link between Iran and Russia in Central Asia, where Western players have become more active, and the anti-Taliban* rhetoric of Donald Trump, who won the US presidential election, shows that things will get hot again in Afghanistan.
Another regional analyst, Firdavs Jalilov, believes that the signed agreement on strategic cooperation between Russia and Iran will be of great importance for the security of Central Asia and, first and foremost, for Tajikistan.
"Trump can use all means, including ISIS** and anti-Taliban* forces, to harm the interests of Russia and China. But the participation of Tajikistan and Iran will change the balance in favor of Moscow and Beijing," he believes.
Experts also note that the issue of Iran's inclusion in the CSTO, of which Tajikistan is a member, and Tehran has been showing interest in it since 2009, may well be discussed in Dushanbe. And such a development of events is not excluded, since in recent years the IRI has become a member of the SCO and received observer status in the EAEU.
*The organization is under UN sanctions for terrorist activities.
**The terrorist organization "Islamic State" is banned in Russia and Tajikistan.
