Central Asian delegations have traveled to Iran for the funeral of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an airstrike on Feb. 28, the first day of U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran. The gesture reflects how Central Asia countries want to preserve and expand longstanding ties with Iran, even as they build trade and diplomatic relationships with the United States.
President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan expressed condolences and hopes for peace during a meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian inTehran on Friday, Tajikistan’s presidential office said.
“It was noted that the volume of trade between the two countries has increased eightfold in the past five years, approaching almost five hundred million dollars in 2025,” the Tajik statement said. “At the same time, it was stated that there are all the necessary opportunities to bring this figure to one billion dollars in the near future.”
Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, the former president of Turkmenistan who shares power with his son and successor, Serdar, was also in Tehran on Friday. In a meeting, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of Iran’s parliament, told him that Iran wanted to expand links with Turkmenistan, according to Iranian state news agency IRNA.
Berdymukhamedov said trade between the two countries should increase and “expressed confidence that Iran would achieve favorable results in future negotiations with the United States,” IRNA said.
Other Central Asian delegations attending funeral ceremonies in Tehran were led by Foreign Minister Yermek Kosherbayev of Kazakhstan; Nuriddin Ismailov, speaker of Uzbekistan’s parliament; and Marlen Mamataliev, head of Kyrgyzstan’s legislative assembly.
A fragile ceasefire between Iran and the United States is in place and negotiations aimed at reaching a lasting settlement to a conflict that impacted the global economy are underway. Delegations from dozens of countries are in Iran for the funeral, which includes events over several days. The mourning is an opportunity for the Iranian leadership to demonstrate international stature after many of its key figures were killed in the U.S.-Israeli attacks.
Khamenei was replaced by his son, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. Some reports say the younger Khamenei was injured in the attack that killed his father and he has not been seen in public since the beginning of the conflict. The extent of his injuries has not been confirmed, though Iran has acknowledged that he was hurt.
