The United Nations would not be able to contribute to Afghanistan’s peace process without support from Iran and other regional countries, a UN official said.
“We support Iran's role in resolving Afghanistan's issues and hope to achieve positive results by continuing such engagement,” Hideo Ikebe, the head of Tehran Liaison Office of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, said.
He made the statement in a recent meeting with Kourosh Karampour, the head of Iran-Afghanistan Parliamentary Friendship Group, ICANA reported.
The world body, according to Ikebe, is against military methods to address Afghan issues and is looking for political solutions that would not work without the involvement of the Afghan government and support of regional countries.
“At the moment, international peace negotiations are being conducted in the absence of Afghanistan’s official government,” he said, adding that without all involved parties at the negotiating table for a political solution, the crisis will not be resolved.
Karampour said peace will only be established in Afghanistan if its people and government play a central role.
“Iran opposes the elimination of Afghan government from peace talks. The process should be led by Afghans,” he said.
Unhelpful Presence
The official noted that at present, 60% of Afghan territories are controlled by Taliban while the US has been apparently combating the insurgency there for the past 17 years.
“This shows that the American presence has had no positive outcome in this country,” he said.
The ideal condition in Afghanistan, according to Karampour, is sustainable peace based on the UN principles that do not cause concern for the Afghan nation and neighboring countries.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has proven in words and in practice over the past 40 years that it would spare no effort toward peace [in Afghanistan],” he said.
Iran has intensified its diplomatic efforts to restore peace to its northeastern neighbor. It has entered into negotiation with Taliban that have been leading an insurgency in Afghanistan for years.
Representatives of the group have recently made a visit to Tehran for talks with Iranian Foreign Ministry officials over the Afghan civil conflict.
“We believe that military solutions will not alleviate the problems in Afghanistan and the presence of foreign forces is a failed experience,” Karampour said.
