Tehran - Xinhua
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said the Islamic republic is against any treaty that would enable the U.S. forces to remain in Afghanistan, local satellite Press TV reported Tuesday. Describing the existence of foreign military bases in the region as the cause of instability in regional countries, Salehi said Tuesday that Iran believes in the competence of Afghan forces in providing security for their own country. The Iranian foreign minister made the remarks during a meeting in Tehran with visiting Afghan Deputy Defense Minister Homayoun Fawzi. Fawzi assured Salehi that Afghanistan would not allow any danger to threaten Iran from Afghanistan. The first meeting of Iran-Afghanistan joint defense committee kicked off in Tehran on Tuesday. The meeting was held in line with the agreements signed between the two countries. Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said in June that the U.S. military bases in Afghanistan were against the national integrity and progress of the regional states.