Marking the first anniversary of the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan after over two decades of occupation by US-led forces, Hassan Kazemi Ghomi told a press conference on Wednesday in Tehran, “The US definitely failed in Afghanistan, but their escape means they are pursuing their goals in Afghanistan from a distance.”
The US has frozen billions of dollars worth of Afghan assets which, as the Iranian official said, has tightened the economic noose around the Afghan people.
The Iranian representative said Iran follows the developments in Afghanistan with watchful eyes, as insecurity and the rapidly declining living standards in Afghanistan will spill over into Iran, already hosting some four million Afghan refugees for decades.
Kazemi Ghomi also noted that Iran has to settle several issues with the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan, including border security and a dispute over Iran’s water share from the Hirmand River, known as Helmand in Afghanistan.
