All five Central Asian presidents are scheduled to attend events in Moscow dedicated to the World War II Victory Day.  

Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said on May 7 that Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokyev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev will attend the event in the Russian capital’s Red Square.

In all, leaders of nine countries will attend the Victory Day military parade in Moscow. 

"On May 9, leaders of foreign countries and other foreign representatives will take part in a military parade to mark the 79th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War.  Specially invited Cuban President Canel Bermudez, Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith and President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau Sissoco Embaló will also attend the Victory Day parade," Ushakov added.  

Armenian President Nikol Pashinian, who attended the celebrations last year, said earlier that he will not be able to take part in the event this year.

The Kremlin said earlier that Putin will hold separate talks with leaders of Cuba, Laos, and Guinea-Bissau after the parade on May 9.

Foreign attendance of the May 9 celebration has waned since Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014.

In 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon was the only head of state to attend the Victory Day parade in Moscow.

Putin and his officials traditionally hold meetings with foreign leaders and delegations around the May 9 celebration.

Recall, Emomali Rahmon on May 2 held phone talks with Vladimir Putin.  The parties reportedly discussed topical issues of bilateral cooperation between Tajikistan and Russia.  Rahmon and Putin, in particular, discussed in detail issues related to labor migration and they reached an agreement to instruct relevant agencies to intensify work in this area, according to the Tajik president’s official website.  The heads of state also noted the close coordination of activities of law enforcement agencies and special services of the two countries in combating terrorism, extremism and transnational organized crime as well as significance of further expansion of cooperation between them.  

During the telephone conversation, Vladimir Putin, in particular, invited Emomali Rahmon to participate in an informal meeting of the CIS heads of state and attend May 9 Victory Day events that will take place in Moscow.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin said confidence was also expressed that recently intensified attempts by certain forces to artificially escalate the situation around labor migrants arriving in Russia, including those from Tajikistan, will be jointly suppressed and will not be able to damage the time-tested fraternal relations between the peoples of the two countries.