Amid ongoing tensions over Iran’s water rights from the Helmand River, Iran’s special representative for Afghan affairs has confirmed that 300 million cubic meters of water from Afghanistan have entered Iran.
Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran’s special representative for Afghanistan affairs, told Islamic Republic-affiliated media that Iran will fully receive its rightful share of water from Afghanistan.
What is referred to as Iran’s water rights from the Helmand River is based on a treaty signed in 1973 between the two countries’ officials, stipulating that a specified amount of water must flow from Afghanistan to Iran each year.
According to Iranian claims, this treaty was not implemented by the Taliban administration, leading to one of the most serious verbal tensions between the Taliban officials and the Iranian government last year, which resulted in consultations and negotiations.
Following these negotiations, it is reported that 300 million cubic meters of water from Afghanistan have entered Iran. Mr. Qomi, emphasizing the “commitments of the Afghan side,” expressed hope that Iran’s entire water share of 820 million cubic meters from the Helmand River will be fully met.
It is worth noting that, following consecutive droughts in Afghanistan, new analyses of snowfall and rainfall across the country indicate that Afghanistan will experience a wetter year than a normal water year.
Najibullah Sadaid, a water and environmental management specialist, told Khaama Press that new findings containing scientific analyses of climatic phenomena show that the extent of snow cover and the snow thickness is significantly greater than last year.
According to him, “this year, except for some elevations of the Pamir and Hindu Kush mountains, snow is more abundant across the country than in a normal water year,” indicating that Afghanistan has been rescued from a severe drought crisis.
Hassan Kazemi Qomi has announced three reform actions by the Taliban administration to ensure these water rights, stating that “as a result of the repair of the Kamal Khan Dam gates and the dredging of the water transfer path towards Sistan, more than 300 million cubic meters of Iran’s water rights have been secured.”
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