Taliban Give Consent to Dam Supply Check: Iran’s Envoy
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s ambassador to Kabul said the Taliban have agreed to permit Iranian experts to inspect the amount of water behind the Kajaki Dam in Helmand Province of Afghanistan amid a dispute between the two neighbors over the share of water from the Hirmand River.
Speaking in a televised interview, Hassan Kazemi Qomi said Iran is making serious efforts to protect its right to a share of water from the Hirmand River.
While the Kabul officials claim that the problem is caused by the scarcity of water and Tehran insists on verification of the issue, the Taliban have now agreed to allow Iranian experts to inspect the situation in person and observe the amount of water behind the Kajaki Dam, the envoy noted, describing it as a “good step”.
Iran and Afghanistan have been locked in a protracted dispute over the water of the Hirmand River, which originates in the Hindu Kush Mountains near Kabul and flows 700 miles (1,126 kilometers) south before flowing into Hamoun wetlands, located in Iran’s Sistan and Balouchestan.
The two countries signed a water-sharing accord on the Hirmand River in 1973, under which Afghanistan pledged to deliver an average of 820 million cubic meters of water per annum to Iran.
Iran has repeatedly criticized Afghanistan for failing to honor the agreement in letter and spirit.
In May, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi warned the Taliban rulers that they will have to accept the consequences of their failure to provide Iran’s southeastern province of Sistan and Balouchestan with its share of water from the Hirmand River.
“I’d remind the rulers of Afghanistan that they should not regard our demand as being ordinary and must take it very seriously,” the president cautioned.
On the speculations that the Kajakai Dam in southern Afghanistan does not contain much water or sludge that has piled up in the dam, the president said Afghanistan should allow Iranian experts to observe the situation.
There will be no debate if Iranian technicians confirm that the dam in Afghanistan lacks water, but if there is water, Iran will by no means allow the right of its citizens to be violated, he warned.