Iranian delegation in Kabul to discuss border issues

With the tensions rising between Iran and Afghanistan over the boundary dispute, the Iranian embassy in Kabul announced that a delegation, led by the deputy minister of foreign affairs, arrived in the country to discuss border matters with the Taliban officials.

While announcing, the Iranian Embassy called Alireza Bigdeli, Deputy consular officer of Foreign Affairs and Expat Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the delegation's chairman, Khaama Press reported.

The purpose of the Iranian official, Bigdeli's visit to Kabul, according to the embassy, is consular cooperation, encompassing securing shared borders and legalizing Afghan nationals' travel to Iran.

The delegation visits Kabul at a time when Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran's special representative for Afghanistan, announced the formation of a joint Iranian-Afghan committee to prevent border clashes.

The Iranian official's visit coincides with a border confrontation that took place on Sunday night, late July, between the Iranian military and Taliban forces in the Hirmand region of Iran, reported Khaama Press.

The confrontation took place in the Darwish area of the Kang district of Nimruz province, which borders Iran, according to Khaama Press citing Taliban border commander Mohammad Ebrahim Hewad.

In that confrontation, one Taliban soldier was killed and another was injured. Both sides accused the other of opening fire first during Sunday's exchange of fire.

Meysam Barazandeh, governor of Iran's Hirmand county was quoted as saying by Iranian media said: "There was a clash between the border guards of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Taliban forces."

Afghan and Iranian border forces have faced each other several times in Nimroz and Herat provinces since the Islamic Emirate took power in Afghanistan last year.

In April, an Afghan delegation led by the Taliban's acting minister of refugees and repatriations said that they are likely to visit Iran's capital Tehran to hold talks over refugee-related challenges and the border tension.

"We are trying to visit Iran to talk about all the problems that Afghans are struggling with there; we hope we can talk and solve the problems," said Khalilurahman Haqqani, acting minister of refugee and repatriations, according to TOLOnews.

However, at a time when the price of petrol and gasoline has increased at an unprecedented rate in Afghanistan, the Taliban has signed a deal with an Iranian firm to purchase 350,000 tonnes of oil, media reports said citing the Taliban's Ministry of Finance.

The Ministry in a statement has said that the Afghan delegation who was on its visit to Iran has entered into a contract with an Iranian firm to purchase 350,000 tonnes of oil from the neighbouring country of Iran.