Tajikistan International Affairs - The Times Of Central Asia

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Avaza Summit

Avaza Summit Highlights East–West and North–South Trade Routes

On October 8, the presidents of five Central Asian states and Azerbaijan gathered in Avaza, on Turkmenistan's Caspian coast, to discuss closer economic and political cooperation. Hosted by Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov, the annual Consultative Meeting included Azerbaijan as a full participant for the first time, extending the forum across the Caspian to the South Caucasus. The six leaders adopted a joint statement recognizing East–West and North–South transport corridors as priorities for regional development. The summit highlighted the region's growing importance in Eurasian trade and international supply chains. Beyond expanding transport networks, the leaders proposed closer industrial cooperation and cross-border investment, seeking to capitalize on their geographic advantages while preserving flexibility in their international economic relationships. Transport Corridors in Multiple Directions Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov said, "I believe it is now important to intensify negotiations and practical steps toward establishing transport and logistics connectivity along the East–West and North–South routes." He added, "The Central Asia–Caspian Sea–South Caucasus–Europe corridor should play a key role here." He also emphasized that cooperation among Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan as Caspian states could help integrate the wider Central Asian region and other countries into these transport networks. Turkmenistan remained prepared to make its Caspian infrastructure available for mutually beneficial projects. Its port at Turkmenbashi and rail connections toward Iran give it a practical role in both East–West and North–South trade. The Turkmen president's emphasis on North–South connectivity also reflects ongoing transport cooperation with Russia. In May 2026, Turkmenistan reported that Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran were working on an agreement to improve freight movement along the corridor's eastern branch. Turkmen officials also outlined preferential railway tariffs and container services linking Turkmenbashi with Russia's Olya port. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also highlighted growing demand for the Middle Corridor, while emphasizing the continued importance of the North–South route. "For Kazakhstan, the North–South route in cooperation with Russia remains particularly relevant," Tokayev said. The statement is consistent with Kazakhstan's longstanding multivector foreign policy, which seeks to maintain established trade connections while expanding access to alternative transport routes. Kazakhstan, Central Asia's largest economy, occupies a strategic position at the intersection of major East–West and North–South transport routes. For the region’s landlocked economies, a wider choice of reliable routes can improve access to markets and reduce dependence on individual transit connections. Expanding the Middle Corridor Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev emphasized investments on both shores of the Caspian, noting that transit cargo volumes along the Middle Corridor increased by more than 10% in 2025 and by almost 20% during the first eight months of 2026. Azerbaijan has invested in ports, railways, highways and other infrastructure to facilitate trade between Central Asia and international markets. It also serves as a transit route for Kazakh and Turkmen oil exports, giving the country a growing role in connecting Central Asian producers with markets to the west. Tokayev proposed exploring the integration of the Middle Corridor with the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), a planned transport link through Armenia connecting mainland Azerbaijan...

Fuel Supplies

Tajikistan Holds Fuel Talks With U.S. After Starting Imports From Iran

Tajikistan has discussed fuel supplies with the United States after beginning imports of petroleum products from Iran, whose oil sector is under U.S. sanctions. On October 8, Tajikistan's Minister of Energy and Water Resources Daler Juma met with Carson Relitz Rocker, chargé d'affaires at the U.S. Embassy, to discuss the country's petroleum supplies and other issues. Tajikistan depends almost entirely on imports of petroleum products. From January through September 2026, the country imported approximately 1.37 million metric tons of oil, petroleum products, liquefied gas, and related goods worth $1.13 billion. This included 333,200 metric tons of gasoline, 424,800 metric tons of diesel, and 321,300 metric tons of liquefied gas. Russia remains the country's main fuel supplier, accounting for more than half of its imports. It delivered approximately 708,000 metric tons worth $628.9 million over the nine-month period. Dushanbe purchases some of this fuel duty-free under intergovernmental agreements. Kazakhstan, meanwhile, accounts for a significant share of liquefied gas imports, supplying 225,600 metric tons worth $153.8 million. Imports of petroleum products from Iran totaled 15,600 metric tons worth $14.7 million over the nine-month period. In September, Tajikistan's Ministry of Energy and Water Resources confirmed that shipments of Iranian oil and petroleum products had begun in late August. The two sides had previously discussed potential purchases of up to 2.55 million metric tons annually, but this was a proposed volume rather than an existing contract. Tajikistan's authorities have not disclosed the exact composition of the shipments already received or how they were transported to the country. American restrictions cover Iran's oil sector and can affect international payments, insurance, and transportation. An official at the U.S. Department of the Treasury warned in comments to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in early October that companies operating in Iran's petroleum sector face sanctions risks, but declined to comment on specific possible violations. Washington has not publicly accused Tajikistan of breaching sanctions over the shipments. Separately, Tajikistan is preparing to host the third B5+1 Forum, bringing together business representatives and policymakers from the U.S. and the five Central Asian countries. The meeting is scheduled for April 20–21, 2027. It is being organized by the U.S.-based Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) in cooperation with Tajikistan's government. B5+1 complements C5+1, the diplomatic format between the same six countries, and is intended to address trade, investment, and barriers to doing business. Previous forums were held in Almaty in 2024 and Bishkek in February 2026. According to CIPE, more than 15 memorandums were signed between American companies and Central Asian partners at the meeting in the Kyrgyz capital. The forum is expected to build on discussions of critical minerals, transport, and digitalization. However, CIPE has not announced a detailed agenda for the Dushanbe meeting, and there is no indication that American fuel supplies will be discussed.

Migrants in Russia

They Went to Russia for Work and Ended Up at War: How Central Asians Enter the Russian Military

Twenty-year-old Ainabek Keldibek went to Russia expecting to work as a security guard. Relatives of other young Kazakh men say they had taken jobs at a sausage factory and a poultry farm. But according to reports aired in early October on Kazakhstan’s KTK television channel, the men later ended up in or near the combat zone in Ukraine. Some appeared in videos wearing Russian military uniforms and asked Kazakhstan to help bring them home. On October 7, relatives of Kazakh citizens who had reportedly ended up in Russia’s military visited the Foreign Ministry in Astana to seek help bringing them home. Lawyer Meirman Shekeyev, who accompanied the families, said his list had grown from eight to 21 people as more relatives contacted him. The same day, ministry spokesperson Zhanbolat Ussenov said officials were checking appeals and would send Russia a list of citizens after verification. Negotiations over their return were underway, he said. Exactly how the men ended up in the Russian military remains unclear. One family said their relative had already been wounded, while KTK reported that the circumstances surrounding the signing of the military contracts have not been independently established. For now, much of what is known comes from the men themselves and their relatives. Their stories raise a broader question that neither Moscow nor the capitals of Central Asia have fully answered: how many people from the region have ended up in the Russian military, and under what circumstances did they get there? Nearly 13,000, According to a Ukrainian Database Russia does not publish comprehensive statistics on foreign contract soldiers. Central Asian governments have only fragmented data from criminal cases, consular appeals, and reports from relatives. The most detailed country-by-country breakdown comes from the Ukrainian government project I Want to Live. By May 2026, the project said it had identified 12,919 citizens of the five Central Asian states who had signed contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense: 4,955 citizens of Uzbekistan, 3,489 of Tajikistan, 2,420 of Kazakhstan, 1,474 of Kyrgyzstan, and 581 of Turkmenistan. These figures cannot be regarded as complete or independently verified. I Want to Live operates within Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, and Ukraine is a party to the war. In addition, 12,919 is a cumulative figure, not the number of Central Asians currently at the front. Some may have been killed or captured, completed their service, returned home, or obtained Russian citizenship. Another major estimate comes from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Truth Hounds, and the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law. Their report estimates that Russia recruited at least 27,000 foreign nationals from more than 130 countries after February 2022. More than 10,000 of them, according to the study, came from Central Asia. The study is based on open sources, consultations with Ukrainian authorities and experts, and interviews with 16 prisoners of war and former Russian servicemen. There are no comparable publicly available Russian statistics, meaning it is impossible to...

Visa Liberalization

Tajikistan and Iran Expand Visa-Free Travel

Tajikistan says a visa-free regime with Iran has been fully implemented, allowing citizens of each country to travel more freely to the other. As of October 5, Tajik and Iranian citizens with “ordinary foreign passports” can enter, transit through, and stay in the territory of the other country without a visa for up to 30 days within a 90-day period, Tajikistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. “This system is implemented through international border crossings, including land crossings, international airports, and air routes from third countries, in compliance with the requirements of the national legislation of both countries,” Tajikistan’s state Khovar news agency reported in a story about the ministry’s statement. The visa-free regime has been in the works for several years. Iran and Tajikistan signed a memorandum of understanding about it in 2023 and introduced the policy in stages. In early 2025, for example, Tajikistan said the measure applied only to air travel between the two countries and that citizens traveling through third countries and/or land border crossings still had to get a visa. Iran and Tajikistan don’t share a land border, but they have close economic and cultural links. Land travel between the two countries would require passing through Afghanistan, or Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Those countries have their own, separate visa and entry requirements. The full implementation of the visa-free regime between Iran and Tajikistan comes as other Central Asian countries look for ways to ease travel requirements and strengthen economic and other ties. Turkmenistan says it has introduced an online visa system from this month as part of a modernization drive, though some details about the new process are lacking.

CAMCA

Opinion: The 2026 CAMCA Regional Forum Concludes – What’s Next?

The 2026 CAMCA Regional Forum has concluded in Baku after two full days of conversation on a range of topics shaping the future of the region. The closing ceremony included an official announcement that next year’s Forum will take place in Uzbekistan in June of 2027. The question now is: in the lead-up to next year’s convening, how do we build on the connections, ideas and momentum built in Baku to truly advance regional cooperation in the months ahead? How do we turn conversation into action? The mechanism and catalyst for this will be the CAMCA Network – the dynamic collection of more than 300 talented leaders spread throughout the entire region and beyond – united by a common conviction that a successful future of the CAMCA region lies in intraregional cooperation and collaboration. Through existing initiatives, such as CAMCA Talking magazine, and forthcoming projects – CAMCA TV and the CAMCA Conversations podcast – the network will utilize these innovative platforms to raise awareness around the important developments taking place within the CAMCA region, and, most importantly, to highlight where regional cooperation is well underway, where more is needed, and how leaders across sectors can do their part to drive tangible collaboration to the next level. While the CAMCA Network can serve as an important stimulus of this effort, it is critical that we continue to expand the CAMCA community across all sectors and build partnerships with individuals, organizations and companies that share our vision for CAMCA’s connected, collaborative and prosperous future. This is the charge we take from Baku and will be an integral part of CAMCA’s next chapter. From his time in public service and at the outset of the Rumsfeld Foundation’s work with rising leaders from the region, Secretary Rumsfeld believed in the incredible potential of the CAMCA region, predicated on the ten countries themselves recognizing the benefit of their enhanced cooperation. 20 years ago, there were few who shared his vision or his optimism. Today, on the heels of the 12th annual CAMCA Forum, this vision has come to life, and global interest and momentum are in CAMCA’s favor. As we look towards the 2027 CAMCA convening in Uzbekistan, we are eager to invite partners from within the region and across the globe to join us in building CAMCA’s next chapter. The groundwork has been laid, and a dedicated and energetic network of regional trailblazers now exists – let’s put it to work and bring CAMCA to a new level. The CAMCA Regional Forum is an annual, non-partisan event dedicated to promoting dialogue, cooperation, and sustainable economic growth across Central Asia, Mongolia, the Caucasus, and Afghanistan. Established as a premier platform for high-level engagement, the Forum convenes diverse stakeholders from government, business, academia, civil society, and beyond. The Forum is co-organized by the Rumsfeld Foundation, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, and the CAMCA Network. Learn more at www.camcaforum.org. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy...

Arms Trade

India Says It Exported Akash Missile System to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan

India says Tajikistan and Turkmenistan are customers of its Akash surface-to-air missile system, which can be used to counter threats including drones, missiles, and fighter aircraft. The two Central Asian countries have not commented publicly on the Akash exports, and Indian officials have not provided details about the transactions. But Indian Defense Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh has told Asian News International (ANI) that there is growing international interest in the Akash system, which Indian officials regard as a success of their indigenous defense industry. "Akash, I would say that it is one of our success stories. It shows the maturing of our indigenous missile design and production system. It is effective in dealing with high-velocity aerial targets,” Singh said. “The first customer was Armenia, which has taken multiple batteries. Thereafter, we've also exported it to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Production has stabilized.” He said there were “additional orders for our own services” and that more were expected from other countries, according to an ANI report on October 1. The agency described the sales to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan as “an expansion of Indian arms exports into traditionally Russian-supplied markets.” While Tajikistan and Turkmenistan traditionally relied on Soviet and Russian military hardware, Turkmenistan has taken significant steps to diversify its arms suppliers, also buying weapons from China, Türkiye, and Italy. Tajikistan is more closely tied to Russia, though it has bought weapons systems from China. Tajikistan is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a regional alliance that is led by Russia; Turkmenistan maintains a posture of self-declared neutrality and is not a member of the CSTO. Indian officials have promoted the Akash missile system as a relatively economical option in the international air defense market. India’s state-run Defence Research and Development Organisation started developing the Akash missile system in the 1980s. In the mid-2010s, it was inducted into the Indian army and air force, which ordered thousands of the missiles. The Indian government approved Akash exports in December 2020, according to Airforce Technology, a website that reports on procurement in the military aerospace industry. The Akash weapon system can target threats including drones, helicopters, and fighter aircraft at ranges of 4.5 to 25 kilometers and altitudes of up to 20 kilometers, India’s Defense Ministry said.