Iran Offers Proposal To Solve Afghanistan Crisis

On Wednesday, Iran presented a proposal aimed at "alleviating the people's suffering" in Afghanistan and preventing the rise of "threats" from the country.

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"There is no doubt that it is not in the interest of any of its neighbors that Afghanistan re-enters a new cycle of civil war," Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said at a conference in Tehran with Afghanistan's neighboring countries.

A stable development of Afghanistan requires the establishment of an all-embracing government that allows "effective participation" of all "ethnic and religious" groups, based on dialogues and without foreign interferences, Abdollahian pointed out, adding that neighboring countries should use all their influence on Taliban leaders and other Afghan parties to encourage the establishment of such a government.

The Foreign Minister also pointed to "undeniable duties" of the Taliban as "the ruling incumbent" in the country with such responsibilities as ensuring security, fighting terrorism, respecting the rights of different groups, and providing basic needs for the population. It is also necessary that the Taliban adopts a "friendly approach" towards their neighbors and give assurances that no threat will be posed to its neighbors from Afghan soil.

The Afghan people have an urgent need for fairly-distributed humanitarian aid. It requires a solid mechanism, and Iran suggests that aid should be distributed through the Economic Cooperation Organization's program for Afghanistan, he added and proposed the creation of an intelligence-security cooperation mechanism to fight against possible organized crime and terrorism in Afghanistan. Amir Abdollahian also voiced Iran's proposition to request the UN secretary general's mediation between Afghan groups over the future political structure of Afghanistan, in case of necessity.

The gathering in Tehran followed a virtual meeting of foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighbors that was held on Sept. 8. Amir Abdollahian expressed his hope that Wednesday's session would act as a platform to discuss practical ways for the Afghan neighbors to work together to tackle common concerns over the crisis.

Afghanistan has entered a new phase of a decades-long crisis since U.S. troops hastily abandoned the country, putting an end to almost 20 years of military occupation as the Taliban militias took power.