FM calls for Afghanistan cooperation in Iran's water right

Speaking on the sidelines of the Iranian President's visit to Sistan-Baluchestan Province, Amirabdollahian said that the technical delegation from the Iranian Ministry of Energy should visit the Kajaki Dam with the Afghan side and measure the water level.

The Iranian foreign minister said that based on this assessment, it should be announced whether, in case of water release, this water will enter the Sistan region or not, and according to the treaty, this is Iran's natural right, and "we are seriously pursuing this matter".

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on Wednesday arrived in Sistan-Baluchestan Province, southeast Iran, to follow up on the issue of water rights from the Helmand River, as a dispute continues with the neighboring Afghanistan over the Iranian share of the water from the river known as Hirmand in Iran.

Amirabdollahian, who is accompanied by a number of foreign ministry officials, as well as Iran’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan Hassan Kazemi Qomi, held talks with officials in Sistan and Baluchistan Province over Iran’s water rights. The southeastern province is home to Lake Hamun on the Iran-Afghanistan border, which the Helmand River runs into.  

Earlier on Wednesday, the top Iranian diplomat discussed the issue with Afghanistan’s Caretaker Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on the phone.

Amirabdollahian said that releasing Iran’s share of the water from the Helmand River is a “serious demand” of Tehran that could affect bilateral ties.

He also stressed the need for the full implementation of a 1973 water-sharing bilateral treaty under which Iran is entitled to receive 820 million cubic meters of water from Helmand each year.