Certain regional, extra-regional countries transferring terrorists to Afghanistan: Top Iranian official

The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) says certain countries in the region and beyond are transferring Takfiri terrorists to Afghanistan.

Speaking at the fourth meeting of the Regional Security Dialogue in Tajikistan’s capital of Dushanbe on Friday, Ali Shamkhani said terrorism and extremism are among the main causes of insecurity in Afghanistan.

“Unfortunately, we have alarming evidence of the presence and involvement of some regional and extra-regional countries in the transfer of terrorists to Afghanistan.”

Shamkhani urged regional countries to focus on efforts that would boost security and put joint deterrent measures on the agenda to prevent insecurity and instability. Iran’s top security official emphasized that all countries and Afghanistan’s acting Taliban government must fulfill their responsibilities in this regard.

Shamkhani pointed to the regional circumstances, not least in Afghanistan over the years and the disgraceful defeat of the United States there, and said Washington must not only release the frozen assets of the Afghan people, but also compensate for the damage it has caused in the war-ravaged country.

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Iran’s permanent ambassador to the United Nations says the United States’ sanctions are acting as heavy impediments in the way of the Islamic Republic’s efforts to assist Afghan refugees.

He pointed the finger at the United States, saying Washington and its “wrong expansionist” policies are at fault for the “two catastrophes of the 20-year war in Afghanistan and the war in Ukraine.”

Referring to Iran's efforts to boost security in its neighboring country, the SNSC secretary said, “The Islamic Republic of Iran has always called for the establishment of security, peace, and stability in Afghanistan and deems it necessary for the development and welfare of Afghans and other nations in the region.”

He said Iran has been hosting about five million Afghans in recent years, and this issue has created a host of issues for the country due to the absence of effective international aid and the existence of cruel sanctions.

The SNSC secretary said discrimination and deprivation of rights in various fields are among the main factors that allow terrorist groups to abuse the situation in Afghanistan. The establishment of a broad-based government in Afghanistan, he said, would promote stability.

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Iran’s top security official has decried US sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis, calling on the international community to unite and stand up against Washington’s unilateral policies.

Shamkhani also underscored the importance of adopting proper ways to solve Afghanistan's problems, particularly in the economic sector, saying, “if we want to limit grounds for the US interference in Afghanistan.”

In a meeting with his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev earlier in the day, Iran’s top security official voiced concern over the unfolding developments in Afghanistan and the emergence of various terrorist groups in the country.

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