Iran Ready to Help Afghanistan Fight Terror

"Tehran is ready to help the country in its fight against terrorists at Kabul’s request," Brigadier General Hatami said in a meeting with Afghan Deputy Defense Minister Tamim Asi in Tehran on Thursday.

The Iranian Defense Minister said that Tehran attaches great importance on security, peace and stability in the region and will spare no effort in this regard, adding, "Afghanistan enjoys a special status among Iran’s other neighbors."

He pointed to Iran’s effective advisory support for Iraq and Syria in their operations against Takfiri terrorists, and said, "Tehran, if asked by the Kabul government, is also ready to provide Afghanistan with advisory and security assistance in its fight against terrorism."

The Afghan deputy defense minister, for his part, said his visit to Tehran is aimed at enhancing the military and defense ties between the two sides, adding that no country is allowed to undermine bilateral relations between the two neighbors.

He added that Afghanistan considers Iran’s security as its own, adding that his country would not tolerate any threat against the Islamic Republic.

In a relevant development in early February, Brigadier General Hatami in a phone conversation with his Afghan counterpart Tariq Shah Bahrami warned that Washington "is implementing plots to transfer the ISIL" terrorist group to Afghanistan.

During the conversation, Brigadier General Hatami voiced regret over the death of hundreds of innocent Afghan people in the recent terrorist attacks, stressing, "Iran has always been concerned about foreign plots against the Afghan people."

He said that the Americans have created the ISIL to use them in Iraq and Syria, and added, "The US attempted to take the ISIL out of the battlefield after its heavy defeats in the two countries and transfer them to Afghanistan to justify its presence in Afghanistan with their shameless crimes."

The Iranian Defense Minister warned that the US is now pursuing plans to increase military forces in Afghanistan, and said establishment of security in Afghanistan is possible only through the regional states' positive approach and use of their common capacities to fight against terrorism.