Meeting with Afghanistan’s Minister of Urban Development Affairs Sadat Mansoor Naderi, Abbas Akhoundi deemed the talks with the Afghan delegation as effective and said, “Khaf-Harat railway will soon become operational; the project needs to continue till the railway is connected to Tajikistan, Kirghizstan and china to accomplish the Silk Road railway grid from the South of Iran to China.”
Akhoundi also referred to Tehran’s effort to hold a summit with the attendance of Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kirghizstan and China in order to reach bilateral cooperation to complete the railway in border areas.
The Iranian official enumerated several constructional projects which can be done in joint collaboration with Afghanistan including building of some bridges in Zabol border area as well as the revival of the Lake Hamoun, calling for technical investigations in this regard in upcoming meetings.
Akhoundi expressed satisfaction towards the current status of air travel between the two countries announcing that currently nine aircrafts are commuting to and from Afghanistan every week.
Announcing Iran’s readiness to provide Afghanistan with experiences in the field of Urban Planning, he added that, “the Afghan delegation is scheduled to visit several of Iranian cities and become familiar with urban planning of new cities, building technology and major constructional projects as well as building materials including cement, steel, tile, etc. produced in Iran.”
“Currently a portion of these materials have been offered to Afghanistan and I believe that increasing similar relations and collaborations will be effective for the peace and security of the two countries,” concluded Akhoundi.
Minister of Urban Development Affairs of Afghanistan Sadat Mansoor Naderi, for his part, thanked the hospitality of Iran’s government stating that, “Afghanistan and Iran share several points in common including the religion, culture and language and accordingly Iran has always been a close friend of Afghanistan providing it with abundant help and assistance over the past 14 years.”
Expressing hope for continuous cooperation between the two countries, the official appreciated Iran’s Leader’s attention towards Afghan refugees providing them with educational services, life insurance and other services adding that, “the Afghan President has always emphasized close ties with neighboring countries particularly with the Islamic Republic of Iran; therefore, Iran enjoys an important position in Afghanistan’s foreign policy."
“We are planning to encourage Iranian businessmen to invest in the modernization and rehabilitation of Afghanistan and we would not hesitate to cooperate with and help them,” noted Mansoor Naderi expressing hope that his Iranian counterpart will soon visit Afghanistan.
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