TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has blamed two decades of U.S. occupation for Afghanistan’s current crises, warning that any renewed foreign military presence in the country would endanger regional peace and security.

Speaking at a quadrilateral meeting with the foreign ministers of China, Pakistan, and Russia on Afghanistan, Araghchi said Washington’s intervention and 20-year war had brought “nothing but disaster and insecurity.” He stressed that the conflict left “countless victims” and fueled terrorism, narcotics production, corruption, poverty, and displacement across the country.

He also pointed to the chaotic 2021 U.S. withdrawal, saying it abandoned Afghanistan and its neighbors to shoulder the consequences of the war alone. “The United States and NATO are responsible for many of the challenges that Afghanistan and the region are facing today,” he said.

Rejecting any form of political or military interference, Iran’s top diplomat emphasized that exploiting Afghanistan’s vulnerabilities to achieve “geopolitical goals” is unacceptable. “The re-establishment of foreign military bases inside or around Afghanistan would violate its sovereignty, threaten regional peace and security, and fuel extremism and instability,” Araghchi warned.

His comments came as the U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers with “bad things” if they refused to return the Bagram airbase to Washington.

Expressing Tehran’s concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation, Araghchi called for aid to be delivered in a “neutral, non-political and unobstructed” manner, and urged the unconditional release of Afghanistan’s frozen assets to help restore its economy.

The New York meeting, initiated by Russia and held on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly, marked the fourth round of quadrilateral talks between the four ministers on Afghanistan.

In a joint statement, the foreign ministers reaffirmed their support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty, unity, and stability, free from terrorism, war, and drug trafficking. They urged NATO members to accept responsibility for the repercussions of their military presence, called for the lifting of unilateral sanctions, and opposed any re-establishment of foreign bases in or around Afghanistan.

The statement also stressed the need for an inclusive Afghan government that represents the will of all its people. The ministers voiced alarm over the continued presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan, including Daesh, warning of their grave threat to both regional and global security. They further pressed the Taliban government to take “effective and verifiable measures” to combat terrorism and eliminate extremist groups.