TEHRAN — The Special Representative of the Iranian President for Afghanistan has said "considering the situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban is a reality in this country that controls the capital and is responsible for ensuring the security of this country."

In an interview with the IRIB news agency on Friday, Hassan Kazemi Qomi said that his appointment to the job shows the status of Afghanistan in Iran's foreign policy with regard to the Islamic Republic’s national security.

He said, “Afghanistan is in a complex and critical situation, and 20 years of American occupation have resulted in nothing but killing, aggression, and destruction for the oppressed people of this country." 

The envoy went on to say, “In such circumstances, we are witnessing the resumption of another dimension of terrorist acts and the killing of the oppressed people of Afghanistan, which can be interpreted as a continuation of the American strategy in the region.”

He underlined that the escape of U.S. troops from Afghanistan coincided with the entry of ISIS into the security dimension of Afghanistan, and this means that the Americans have waged a proxy war against the oppressed Afghan people after their 20 years of occupation of the Central Asian country ended in failure.

Afghanistan is still important for the Americans because they think that they can create security problems for countries like China, Russia and Iran by terrorist groups, Kazemi Qomi remarked.

“We must consider priorities and conditions, because currently Afghanistan is facing security problems and difficult conditions.”

He stressed, “From this perspective, it is important for our country to (help) establish stability and security in Afghanistan, and the Americans want to spread instability and security problems to its neighbors, and Iran will be no exception to this (endeavor).”
The special envoy linked stability and security in the region to stability in Afghanistan and other U.S-occupied countries such as Iraq.

“On the other hand, Afghanistan can be defined in the area of civilization of our country and the protection of this area of civilization is extremely important for us,” he pointed out.

In response to Iran’s duty regarding the inflamed atmosphere in Afghanistan, he stressed regardless of the current political and security environment in Afghanistan, “we must work to expand comprehensive cooperation in this country.”
The Special Envoy also highlighted that the people of Afghanistan were suffering from food shortages and Iran must intensify its trade with the country, while the expansion of political, economic and trade relations with Kabul could affect the stability in the country and prevent flood of migrants towards Iran's borders.

“From this perspective, strengthening comprehensive relations with Afghanistan, including economic, political, defense, and especially regional cooperation will lead to stability, security” in Afghanistan. 

He stressed that in this context, all countries in the region should help build Afghanistan and prevent terrorism as the sinister legacy of the occupiers.

Now the problems afflicting Afghanistan are not limited to the country, the envoy remarked, warning security threats may be directed to countries in the region and Iran must work hard to curb them.

He went on to say that the decision by President Ebrahim Raisi to appoint a special representative for Afghanistan is intended to coordinate efforts and use all national, governmental and private sector capacities, especially in the economic field in this regard. “The private sector should help activate our country's economic diplomacy capacity in Afghanistan within the framework of the roadmap that has been developed.”
On the recent explosions in Shia mosques in Afghanistan, Kazemi Qomi said, “These terrorist acts are not only intended to create chaos in this country, but also to wage a war between Shias and Sunnis, to polarize the country and to involve countries in the region, in particular Iran.”

The special representative stressed, “From this perspective, we are vigilantly monitoring the developments in this country and working hard to cooperate with the people of this country.”
In response to Iran’s purpose in negotiating with the Taliban given the history of the movement, he said, “Given the situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban is a reality in this country, a reality that holds the capital and is responsible for ensuring the security of this country.”

Given the magnitude of problems created by foreigners in Afghanistan and their conspiracy to involved counties in the region, Iran should try to “get out of this situation”, he suggested.

Referring to the Wednesday meeting in Moscow to help Afghanistan, he said, “This meeting was held in order to find solutions for getting out of the crisis in Afghanistan, and we were also diplomatically active” in the conference.
Regarding Iran's policy towards the events in Afghanistan, Kazemi Qomi said Iran, as an active player, will help the Afghan people to establish stability and security, and at the same time strives to expand cooperation, secure the region, counter interventions by the former occupiers and counter terrorism.

He went on to say that "terrorism has a dynamic state and it cannot be said that if a country faces terrorism, it will not affect the region; so Iran, as an active player, would help the Afghan people to restore security.”

On how effective is Iran's role in stemming the web of conflicts in Afghanistan, the former Iranian ambassador to Iraq stressed, “Iran has always been a factor and encourager of unity and, fortunately, we have achieved great success in the diplomatic movements” in Afghanistan.

Pointed to long years of the Afghans’ resistance against the invaders – the Soviets in the 1980s and U.S.-led forces since 2001 - Kazemi Qomi said the Afghans won over occupiers through unity.

“Iran has always supported unity and resistance in Afghanistan and now is the guardian of unity in this country and this is not limited to Afghanistan but in other countries in the region such as Syria, Yemen, Lebanon. Iran is considered a harbinger of unity.”

Iran hosted hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and backed the Mujahedin in their struggle against the invaders in the 1980s.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he said, “The Americans, though they claim they are harbinger of peace and security and fight against terrorism and are savior of the Afghan people, have blocked the money of this oppressed nation and are not willing to release it to heal its pain.”

Regarding the possibility of reaching an agreement with the Taliban on resolving problems related to water rights, countering terrorism and preventing the transit of drugs to Iran, Kazemi Qomi said, “It is possible to reach an agreement in this regard in the new Afghanistan.”
The diplomat stated, “However, we must consider the priorities and conditions, because in the current situation in Afghanistan, which is facing security problems and difficult conditions, we must know what issue to pursue at the right time.”

All these cases were among the agreements between the two countries that should be pursued within the framework of Iran's policies and roadmap already drawn up, Kazemi Qomi remarked.

The special representative said, “We hope that with the participation of Iran and neighboring countries, the necessary security and stability will be provided in Afghanistan so that the intended goals can be achieved within the framework of national interests. I am optimistic about this, and although this path has its complexities and difficulties, it is achievable.”

“In other fields, we faced more difficult conditions and gained a wealth of experience in difficult conditions. In this regard, we hope with the collective participation of countries in the region and within the framework of a specific strategy, under the guidance of the Leader and President, the role played by the relevant ministers and involving the private sector, we can achieve our goals in Afghanistan,” he concluded.