In a meeting with foreign ministers of Russia, China and Pakistan's defence minister, Iran's foreign minister said that terrorist groups such as ISIS and al-Qaeda threaten not only the people of Afghanistan, but also the security of the region.
Abbas Araghchi said that neighbouring countries would not allow terrorism and extremism to grow in Afghanistan. Iran's Foreign Ministry said that the meeting ended with a 19-point statement. The participating countries have not yet issued this statement.
The Russian Foreign Ministry also wrote that the two sides compared their approaches to resolving Afghan issues and emphasised that there is no alternative to establishing relations and partnership with the current Afghan authorities (the Taliban).
According to a statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Iran's foreign minister criticised the 20-year presence of the United States and NATO in Afghanistan and blamed the current situation in Afghanistan on the "shameful" withdrawal of the United States and its allies.
Abbas Araghchi said that by withdrawing from Afghanistan in 2021, the United States and its allies "left all the turmoil for Afghanistan and its neighbours”.
He added that the United States and NATO are responsible for many of the problems that Afghanistan and its neighbours are currently facing.
He stressed that terrorist groups, especially ISIS branches, are taking advantage of the current situation to gain more influence. Stressing on the need to cooperate with the Taliban to fight terrorism, Araghchi added, "We must strengthen our cooperation in the field of fighting terrorism and form a united front against these destructive forces. "Our message must be clear: terrorism has no place in Afghanistan and our region."
The Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran has said that there are more than six million Afghans in Iran and that the Islamic Republic has been severely affected by the flow of refugees and illegal immigrants.
He has emphasised that with the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, the massive migration from Afghanistan has put enormous pressure on Iran.
Araghchi has claimed that Iran spends more than $10 billion annually to meet the needs of Afghan refugees in the country. He called on the international community to continuously support countries hosting migrants, such as Iran.
