It is the longest watercourse in Afghanistan, from the capital to the swampy areas across the border in south-eastern Iran. A 1973 treaty regulates the distribution of resources, but the Kamal Khan dam reignited the controversy. In recent days, foreign ministers have met in Uzbekistan.
Tehran () – The confrontation between Tehran and the Kabul Taliban for control of water resources linked to the Helmand River, the longest in Afghanistan and the main tributary of the Sistan basin, has resumed. A strategic channel in a region thirsty for water and one of the most affected by climate change, which is not salty for much of its length and can therefore be used for agriculture. The river along which numerous dams are built, according to experts, is of fundamental importance not only for the Afghan populations, but also for the Iranians themselves in Sistan and Balochistan, in the southeast of the country.
In recent days, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated that he had discussed the issue with his Taliban counterpart, Amir Khan Muttaqi, during a summit in Uzbekistan. Later, the head of Tehran’s diplomacy added in a message on social networks that he had “insisted in detail” on the issue of territorial claims and exploitation. The other party, he concluded, pledged to respect the Islamic Republic’s “rights” over the waters and the parties “agreed to act immediately” on the proposal.
The two senior officials met last week in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to discuss the situation in Afghanistan and cooperation between Tehran and the Taliban leadership that controls the country. The two neighbors are locked in a longstanding dispute over shared water resources, as the Iranians accuse Kabul of restricting the flow of water from the Helmand River by building more dams along its course.
The river rises in the Hindu Kush mountains near Kabul and then flows south a route of 1,127 km to the Hamoun wetlands and swamps in Iran’s Sistan and Balochistan provinces. Under a 1973 water-sharing agreement, Afghanistan is obliged to drain an average of at least 820 million cubic meters of water a year to Iran.
In July last year, Amir-Abdollahian warned his Afghan counterpart that the unresolved dispute over the exploitation of water resources could affect cooperation between the two countries, as it is an “important indicator” of the commitments made by the government. taliban This warning came shortly after President Ebrahim Raisi’s appeal to the Foreign Affairs and Agriculture Ministries asking them to “rigorously pursue” what he called “water rights” between Iran and Afghanistan.
Tehran had close relations with the Taliban before its return to power in Afghanistan in August 2021. Since then, relations have been strained by frequent border skirmishes and the ongoing dispute over water resources. According to the latest available data, provided by the former Kabul government and published by the Ministry of Water and Energy, Afghanistan only uses 20% of its water resources, with the rest of the surface water going to neighboring nations, including Iran. and Pakistan.
In March 2021, Afghanistan inaugurated the controversial Kamal Khan dam, one of the main points of contention with Tehran over the control and exploitation of the Helmand River and, according to the Iranian side, in flagrant violation of the 1973 treaty. For Kabul, without However, it represents a solution to the many infrastructural and agricultural challenges in the region, as well as providing farmers in Nimruz province with a constant flow of water and electricity. The river is considered a transboundary course and the two neighbors are legally bound to share it based on the principle of fair and reasonable use.
