Iran’s Minister of Energy announced that Masoud Pezeshkian, the country’s president, instructed Iranian political officials on Monday, 5th January, to step up efforts to secure water rights from the Taliban.
Abbas Aliabadi told reporters, “Our country and Turkmenistan are entitled to water from the Harirod River, but the upstream neighbor (Afghanistan) has constructed the Salma Dam.”
He added that although numerous negotiations have taken place with the Taliban, these efforts have so far yielded no results, and Iran was unable to receive its full water allocation last year.
The Iranian Minister of Energy said he has invited Taliban officials to Iran twice already and plans to extend another invitation. Aliabadi stated that next time, Iran will send a delegation to Afghanistan to follow up on the issue “with seriousness.”
He expressed hope that this year, thanks to rainfall, Iran will be able to secure its full water share.
Iran’s water rights from Afghanistan remain one of the most contentious issues between Tehran and the Taliban. Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that they are making efforts to persuade the Taliban on this matter.
