Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi has warned the rulers in Afghanistan to not withhold the water rights of the Iranian people in the southeast country from Helmand, stressing the government is determined to defend the nation’s rights wherever it is.


Speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony of a number of water and electricity projects in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, which borders Afghanistan, President Raeisi warned that Tehran will in no way tolerate a rights violation of the province’s people.



Iran’s water right from the Helmand River is a serious issue, President Raisi said during his visit to the southeastern region in the country to meet Pakistani Prime Minister, Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, follow up on the implementation of development projects, and inaugurate several new plans.

President Raisi further urged Afghanistan to allow Iranian experts to visit the Kajaki Dam in Helmand to check claims about mud or a lack of water there.

Iranian officials have always emphasized the correct implementation of the 1973 Hirmand (Helmand) River Treaty between Iran and Afghanistan.

On Wednesday, Iranian officials, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, held a meeting in the port city of Chabahar aimed at speeding up the process of pursuing the country’s water right from Helmand.