Iran rejects ‘transregional solutions’ for stability in Afghanistan
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that “transregional solutions” could not lead to stability in Afghanistan, as the country hosted a Meeting of the Special Representatives of Afghanistan’s Neighboring Countries Plus Russia in Tehran.
Araghchi told envoys from Pakistan, Uzbekistan, China, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Russia that “regional solutions” would have greater capacity to bring about sustainable development and security in Afghanistan.
Referring to nearly two decades of NATO’s presence in Afghanistan, the top Iranian diplomat said that developments in the region over the past few years had shown that external approaches would neither lead to stability nor guarantee sustainable development.
“Today, more than ever, we need a coordinated framework and regional cooperation on Afghanistan, and regional cooperation is the foundation for stability and prosperity in Afghanistan,” he said.
The Iranian minister said Afghanistan had immense capacities in the economic, human, transit, and natural areas and its geographical position put it at the center of the transportation networks of Central Asia, West Asia, and South Asia.
“Therefore, Afghanistan’s stability and development are not only a humanitarian necessity but also a strategic imperative for the entire region,” he added.
Araghchi noted that the experience of past decades clearly showed that security, development, and prosperity in Afghanistan were directly tied up with the interests of all neighboring countries, saying that Iran had always emphasized the comprehensive integration of Afghanistan into the region.
He also called for setting up a sustainable framework for regional cooperation on Afghanistan, that he said would be beneficial for both the country and the entire region.