Afghan politicians meet Iran’s ambassador to discuss ‘inclusive government’

Asia-Pacific, News August 26, 2021 , by IRIA No Comments

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR) Abdulla Abdullah met Iranian Ambassador Bahador Aminian in Kabul.

Afghan politicians and Iran’s ambassador discussed the establishment of government in Afghanistan “with stability, a system based on the will of the people and with national and international legitimacy”.

Both sides held deliberations on setting up an ‘inclusive’ government in Afghanistan and Iran has expressed support for the idea, however the Afghan Taliban, which controls Afghanistan, has not taken any noticeable steps to include others in a future government.

The meeting took place in Kabul on Wednesday, as Karzai and Abdullah have remained in Afghanistan’s capital city after the Taliban forces took over Kabul, while President Ashraf Ghani fled the country and reached UAE.

During the meeting, Afghan politicians and Iranian Ambassador Bahador Aminian discussed the need to “end the power vacuum in Afghanistan and form a system based on the will of the Afghan people, which would enjoy national and international legitimacy”.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi also urged different groups in Afghanistan to “see the U.S. withdrawal as a turning point and work together to establish an inclusive government”.

Iran’s ambassador to the UN Human Rights Council Esmaeil Baghaei Hamaneh stated on Wednesday that “the current situation in Afghanistan is the result of a long-term military intervention led by the United States, which has left the country in destruction, suffering, despair, and instability and has spread insecurity and instability in the region”.

Baghaei Hamaneh added that “the achievements of the Afghan people must not be threatened” and urged the international community to “live up to its commitments to provide adequate vaccines for Afghan refugees against COVID-19”.

On Wednesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s Foreign Policy Advisor Ali-Akbar Velayati told an Iranian news agency that Afghanistan’s “biggest victory was the expulsion of America”. In recent months, Iran has established good relations with the Afghan Taliban and kept its embassy open, along with China, Pakistan, and Russia.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Afghan Taliban included Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, along with other politicians, in a 12-member council that will govern Afghanistan during the transition period.

According to reports, the council has agreed on Abdul Ghani Baradar, Mullah Yaqub, Khalil-ur-Rehman Haqqani, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Hamid Karzai, Hanif Atmar, and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar”.