A delegation of Taliban representatives visited Tehran on Sunday and held wide-ranging talks with Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi made the announcement at a press conference on Monday, describing the talks as “important”.
“Given that 50% of Afghan territories are overrun by the Taliban and in view of the insecurity and instability in the country, the talks were held with the knowledge of Afghanistan’s government,” he was quoted as saying by ISNA.
The purpose of the negotiations, according to Qasemi, was to facilitate talks between Afghan militant groups and the Kabul government to push forward the peace process.
“As a neighbor and key player in the region … Iran is willing to play a major role in bringing stability to Afghanistan,” he said, stressing that this does not mean alignment or sharing a position with the insurgent group.
He added that the initiation of such talks was essential as part of efforts to encourage dialogue between the militant group and the government.
Qasemi also pointed out that Iran is not the only country to open negotiations with the Taliban and many other countries have had contact with the insurgents as well.
However, “due to the conditions of the region and our position, Iran assumes heavier responsibility toward the Afghan people,” he said, explaining that this is why the talks were held and will most likely continue.
Iranian officials’ communications with the Taliban had started prior to this meeting.
Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, announced officially for the first time during a recent visit to Afghanistan that Iran had conducted negotiations with the group without giving details on the time and place of the meetings.
“[The negotiations] are aimed at resolving the country’s security issues and this process will continue,” he said.
Meanwhile, Taliban representatives have been meeting the United States’ envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, to discuss the withdrawal of international forces and a ceasefire in 2019. They are to meet US officials once again in Saudi Arabia in January but have refused to hold formal talks with the western-backed Afghan government.
The Taliban have been waging an insurgency for a decade and a half to drive out international forces and overthrow the government in Kabul so as to reestablish their strict version of Islamic rule.
EU’s Weakness Against US
The Foreign Ministry spokesman was also asked during the presser about the activation of Europe’s financial mechanism for continuing trade with Iran in the face of US sanctions.
Qasemi said the complications of creating such a system as well as the intense US pressure on European countries have slowed down the process.
“The European Union’s political will was evident but countries of the bloc showed in practice that they do not have enough strength against US pressure,” he said.
After the US abandoned the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement in May and reimposed harsh sanctions, the European Union made efforts to counter the effects of restrictions on Tehran to keep the accord alive.
In addition to a number of legal moves, it proposed a financial mechanism, known as the Special Purpose Vehicle, to keep trade flowing with Iran on a non-dollar basis so that it would not be affected by US sanctions.
It was set to be legally in place by November and become operational in 2019, but has faced a lengthy delay due to a number of challenges largely arising from European governments' and institutions’ fear of US penalties.
No EU state agreed to host the system until France and Germany finally offered to jointly take responsibility. European banks and financial institutions are refusing to cooperate as they face US threats.
“We are still pursuing this matter and are hopeful that Europe will be able to defend its identity and independence,” Qasemi said, noting that Iran has not pinned all its hopes on SPV, nor linked its fate to it.
Immediately after the sanctions came into force, according to Qasemi, Iran entered into negotiations with many countries on cooperation in various sectors, including medicine supply, but the details are not to be disclosed for certain considerations.
“What is important to us is promoting the interests of the country and the people,” he said.
