Iran Pledges Unfaltering Support for Afghan Stability, Security

In a telephone conversation with President of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani on Monday, President Rouhani emphasized that Iran’s policy is based upon the promotion of brotherly and friendly ties and cooperation with all neighbors, particularly with Afghanistan.

“We consider growing stability and security in Afghanistan to be in line with the promotion of our own stability and security, and believe that differences between the groups would be resolved through negotiations and within the framework of principles, and we always stand by the Afghan government and nation in this path,” the Iranian president noted.

Congratulating Ghani on his new term as the president of Afghanistan, President Rouhani hailed the recent compromise among the Afghan political groups and expressed hope that the efforts by all governmental bodies and the High Council for National Reconciliation would contribute to peace, stability and security in Afghanistan.

The Iranian president also hailed the growing relations between Tehran and Kabul, saying, “We must try to speed up the implementation of agreements and joint projects, including the Khaf-Herat railroad which is a major economic project between the two countries.”

President Rouhani noted that completion of a railroad project in southeast Iran connecting the port city of Chabahar to Zahedan within the next year would help promote transportation and freight services in the region.

He finally pointed to Iran’s success and advances in tackling the novel coronavirus pandemic, stressing that the Islamic Republic will keep providing the Afghan migrants with free medical services and treatment.

For his part, President Ghani expressed gratitude to the Iranian government and nation for offering medical services to the Afghan migrants in the battle with COVID-19.

Highlighting Iran’s constructive role in regional stability and security, Ghani called on Iran to support the process of peace and negotiations in Afghanistan.

He further hailed the growing relations between Iran and Afghanistan in various fields, and expressed hope that the efforts by the two countries’ officials would broaden cooperation between the two neighbors.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus in Iran in February, the Afghan migrants and residents in Iran have received free medical supplies such as disinfectants, masks and gloves.

Iran has hosted Afghan refugees since the late 1970s following the occupation of their country by the Soviet Union troops. Although many of those refugees have returned to their country voluntarily, there are still hundreds of thousands of documented and undocumented Afghans in Iran.