The book entitled “The relationships of Iran and the Central Asia: trends and prospects” written by the Iranian scholar and diplomat, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Russia, Mehdi Sanai, has been published in Russia for the first time.

Cultural, linguistic, ethnic and religious relations and close economic and political ties between Iran and the Central Asia date back centuries. Although over the last two decades the level of economic and political cooperation between Iran and the Central Asia declined, which was caused by external and trans-regional factors, the histories of these countries have always been connected together with mutual interests.

This book, which was a result of the author’s academic pursuits of many years, was issued in Tehran earlier in 2011. It examines the main components of the dialogue between Iran and the countries of the post-Soviet Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan  and Uzbekistan), and defines respective principles in foreign politics aimed at improving the efficiency of the regional diplomacy.

The author analyses Iran’s political, cultural, economic relations with each of the countries of the region, taking into account the influence of Russia on the post-soviet countries.

Due to the author’s extensive diplomatic and academic experience, the book is extremely necessary and sought-after for long-term political planning.