A poet and scholar before he was a diplomat, Tehran’s long-serving ambassador to Dushanbe, Ali Asghar Sheardoost, is known about town for his devotion to Iranian and Tajik cultural and linguistic ties. But he also serves as an emissary to one of Iran’s few friends.
Iran has long seen Tajikistan as a foothold in the overwhelmingly Turkic-speaking Central Asia region. Impoverished Tajikistan, for its part, is desperately in need of Iranian investment, which includes massive infrastructure projects. The two countries’ trade turnover last year exceeded $500 million – much of it “unrecorded” – said Sheardoost.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visits frequently—most recently at the end of March to attend celebrations for the Persian New Year and a regional forum on Afghanistan’s economic development. The two countries’ leaders also discussed plans for a railway and pipeline from Iran through Afghanistan to Tajikistan (which now, with Uzbekistan’s de facto blockade of Tajikistan, the country desperately needs). Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon has defended Iran’s nuclear program as peaceful and desires Iranian oil and gas, despite American sanctions.
Shortly after Ahmadinejad’s visit, Sheardoost, who has served in Dushanbe as ambassador for five years, sat down in his office with EurasiaNet.org to discuss local politics, trade, and regional rivalries, cautioning the United States not to take any unilateral actions in Central Asia, while also addressing the future of Islam in secular Tajikistan.
This interview has been translated from Persian and edited for length.
Q: Tajikistan has looked to Iran to help supply it with oil and gas. Was that on the agenda of President Ahmadinejad’s recent visit?
A: Tajikistan is far from Iran and there is no pipeline between the two, so oil and gas must be brought here by truck, making it more expensive. However, during this trip a memorandum was signed by the presidents of Iran, Tajikistan and Afghanistan agreeing to build a road from Iran to Afghanistan and Tajikistan and from here to China. If this road is built, it will be possible to have a pipeline transporting oil and gas from Iran and transporting water from Tajikistan to Iran, Afghanistan and some countries in the Persian Gulf. We also discussed building a petroleum refinery which is in need here in Tajikistan, and for which Iran has the technology.
Q: So you are discussing bypassing Uzbekistan. As we know, some of the post-Soviet Central Asian states do not get along well: borders are frequently closed, energy used as a political lever. How do Uzbekistan’s ongoing border disputes with Tajikistan affect Iranian investment here?
A: We believe the issues between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are something between them, so we try not to meddle. However, there are times when we feel Uzbekistan’s attempts to interfere in Tajik affairs are somehow related to Iran too. In such cases we decide how to respond based on our strategic and national interests.
For instance, Uzbekistan has been strongly against our [proposed 150-megawatt] Ayni hydropower plant [on Tajikistan’s Zerafshan River]. We studied the regional problems and positive effects that it could have for Tajikistan […], and we pondered the studies that have been done proving the dam will have no adverse effect on Uzbekistan. And we made our decision independently and signed a contract saying that, after we finish building the [$220 million, 220-megawatt] Sangtuda[-2] hydropower plant, we will start building Ayni.
Another example: sometimes Uzbekistan’s border guards prevent the traffic of Iranian trucks passing [en route to Tajikistan]. We try to solve these problems; however, when these remain unsolved, we pursue our strategic and national interests, which sometimes Uzbekistan may not like.
Q: The United States has proposed a so-called New Silk Road to facilitate trade and boost the economies of Central Asia and Afghanistan. But Washington has ignored Iran in public discussions of the project. How do you respond?
A: Any plan or idea for Central Asia is not practical without Iran’s participation. If they want to ignore Iran, those plans will remain only on paper and will never be realized. […] Iran is one of the major and most important countries on the historic Silk Road. It is impossible to ignore or to go around Iran. This is recorded throughout history.
Do you think it is possible to have a plan for Afghanistan or Tajikistan and ignore Iran? It is impossible. Iran shares a very long border with Afghanistan and three million Afghans have been living in Iran for over 20 years. Tajikistan as well […] it’s only our lands that are separated, the rest of our characteristics are the same.
Q: How will Washington’s new sanctions, the ones designed to make you open up your nuclear program to international scrutiny, affect Iranian businessmen working here and the Iranian government’s ability to invest here? Will those sanctions slow investment?
A: The economic sanctions that America intensifies day-by-day are not hugely affecting our work with Tajikistan. Surely I don’t mean they do not have any effect. Naturally, banking sanctions make it a little harder to transfer money.
I’ll give you an example. The Anzob Tunnel, which is important to connect the north and south of Tajikistan and is being built by Iranian companies, needed some money to be completed and this money was to be granted partly by Iran. Because of those sanctions, the amount didn’t arrive on time. […] This caused the tunnel not to be completed by this winter, which is an injustice for the Tajiks. The amount [of money] was prepared; workers and engineers were available. These are the problems caused by sanctions. However, it is a mistake to think these sanctions will make Iran surrender. Iranian people have shown throughout history that the more pressure you put on them, the harder, more seriously and with more energy they try to solve their problems. […] The language of sanctions in the current century is not a civilized language.
[Editor’s Note: Tehran has been building Anzob, also known as the Istiklol Tunnel, since 2003. Ahmadinejad and Rakhmon officially opened it in 2006, though it remains unfinished.]
Q: The Tajik government has worked to limit the influence of Islam in recent years. Last year, parliament passed legislation forbidding children under age 18 from attending prayer services and restricting religious education. Authorities often arrest people on suspicion of being Islamic extremists, but rarely offer convincing proof. I understand most Tajiks and Iranians practice different forms of Islam, but coming from the Islamic Republic of Iran, do you see anything problematic or offensive with these efforts to reduce the role of Islam in a predominantly Islamic country?
A: Without wanting to interfere with the Tajiks’ internal governmental affairs, I would say that beliefs and religions are personal matters and governments should not obstruct people’s beliefs. In this case, though, making laws and introducing limits are not having a significant impact because people practice whatever they believe and preventing them has not had a noticeable result. […] Religion is a personal matter; no government can take away my religion. I personally believe that governments should not interfere with it. An example is that if you go to the general mosque in Dushanbe on Sunday you see many children under the age of 18. You can’t watch everyone and prevent them from going to mosques. […]
If it were possible to separate people from their faith by legislation and imprisonment, then in the countries of the former Soviet Union, you wouldn’t find any Muslims. The Communist Party tried to destroy all religions and God and peoples’ beliefs. However, after the Soviet Union you see that people are still Muslims. By restrictions, legislation, and these things it is not possible to prevent people from believing.
Q: Could those efforts backfire?
A: Because the government does not strictly implement this law, there is not currently a problem. Even though there is a law, all kids under age 18 go to mosques, say their prayers and face no problems. However, any government that obstructs peoples’ beliefs will face a problem.
David Trilling is EurasiaNet's Central Asia editor.
David Trilling is Eurasianet’s managing editor.
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