Speaking at the meeting, His Eminence referred to the numerous bonds that are shared between the people of Afghanistan and Iran in religious, cultural and historical areas and reiterated: “The Islamic Republic of Iran has always paid serious attention to the interests and security of Afghanistan and it will continue to do so. It considers the progress of this country, in all areas, to be its own progress.”
Describing the people of Afghanistan as a courageous, ardent and intelligent people, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution stated: “Afghanistan enjoys two great blessings, namely natural and human sources of wealth. By making the most of these sources of wealth, it can make good achievements.”
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed to the hospitality of the people of Iran towards the people of Afghanistan in the years during and following the war and stressed: “Unlike some countries such as America and England, the Islamic Republic of Iran has always behaved towards the people of Afghanistan in a polite, brotherly and hospitable manner and it will do its best to help Afghanistan in technical, engineering and infrastructural areas so that it can benefit from its natural resources.”
His Eminence stressed the necessity to resolve the issue of Iranian-Afghani border rivers as soon as possible, adding: “Such issues should not bring about grudges and displeasure in the relations of two countries such as Iran and Afghanistan which have common borders, culture and needs.”
Expressing satisfaction at his negotiations in Tehran – in particular, the agreement that allows Afghanistan to transit its goods to India through Chabahar – the President of Afghanistan said: “We will always be grateful to the people of Iran for their hospitality and to you because of your positive attitude towards the people of Afghanistan. We hope that with these negotiations in Tehran, the ground will be prepared, more than ever, to expand our relations.”
Ashraf Ghani added: “In coming weeks, we will have a meeting with our experts to discuss the matter related to the mutual utilization of border rivers. We hope that this matter will be resolved within a good framework.
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