Following the reaction of the IE regarding the recent dispute between Afghanistan and Iran over the Helmand River and the warnings of the high officials of Iran, including the President of the country now some American officials have also reacted to the issue.
Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US Special Representative for the peace process of Afghanistan said in a tweet that the Iranian authorities are using the language of force regarding the water issue and are acting in a hostile manner towards the Afghan side.
He added: “Iran’s leaders are showing force, they are threatening with Afghanistan as an enemy, why? They argue that Iran does not receive the amount of water from Afghanistan that it should receive according to the 1973 water treaty between the two countries.”
Khalilzad suggested both sides should implement the terms of the agreement in order to ease the tension and resolve the conflicting situation.
According to Khalilzad, Afghanistan and Iran should resolve the water issue through diplomatic channels and, if necessary, they should refer the problem to a third mediator as an intermediary.
He added: “It is stated in the treaty that the amount of water may be reduced in some years due to drought or some unforeseen events. In case of raising any problem, both countries should seek a solution through diplomatic channels or the problem should be referred to a third party as an arbitrator, and if the proposed steps do not work, then the issue should be referred to the court.”
Meanwhile, political analysts call the recent positions of the Iranian officials as a violation of international and diplomatic principles; they suggest a solution to the water issue in official bilateral meetings.
They said the Iranian side should avoid the unwarranted warnings in order to resolve the issue, and in the presence of joint and expert teams, all aspects of the issue should be evaluated and necessary expediencies should be taken.
The dispute over water between Afghanistan and Iran reached its peak when last week the President of Iran, Ibrahim Raisi, harshly criticized the Afghan side and warned that if the Afghan government considers water issue to be trivial, then they know how to deal with the case.
However, the IE called the statements of Iranian officials irresponsible and damaging.
