Iran calls for US to unfreeze Afghan funds amid humanitarian crisis
Following a visit by Taliban envoy Amir Khan Muttaqi to Tehran, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said it wasn't ready to formally recognize Afghanistan's new rulers.
Iran called for the United States to release Afghanistan’s frozen funds, but said it is not ready to recognize the Taliban-led government following high-level talks between the Islamist group and Iranian officials.
Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visited Tehran over the weekend for talks a spokesperson said would focus on “political, economic, transit and refugee issues between Afghanistan and Iran.”
Iran shares a 900-kilometer (560-mile) border with Afghanistan and hosts some 3.6 million Afghan refugees. Since the Taliban’s takeover in August, hundreds of thousands of Afghan civilians have escaped into neighboring Iran using informal border crossings.
On Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh described the talks as “positive,” but said Iran is “not at the point of officially recognizing” Afghanistan’s new leaders.
