KABUL (Afghanistan): Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and Iran’s Deputy Energy Minister discussed bilateral relations, water sharing in the Helmand River and cooperation on water projects.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MoFA) said Muttaqi met an Iranian delegation led by Deputy Energy Minister Sardar Mohammad Javanbakht.
The visiting delegation confirmed that much of the water from the Helmand River could flow to Iran in 2023-2024. Delegates hoped that more water would flow into the country by the end of this year.
Muttaqi hailed relations between the two countries as friendly and promised that plenty of water would be able to flow to Iran if there was enough water in the Helmand River.
Muttaqi noted that the Kajaki Dam, built about 70 years ago, has lost about half of its water storage capacity to sedimentation in the last 45 years due to the negligence of successive governments. He called on the Iranian side to consider this fact.
As part of the policy, he added, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) is trying to prevent water wastage. Water from the Helmand River also flowed into Nimroz and Iran’s Sistan province, he explained.
aw/mud
