KOFI ANNAN LEFT IRAN MORE PERPLEXED
TEHRAN 27 Jan. (IPS) United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan ended Sunday a two-day visit to Iran, where, according to informed sources, he delivered a "note" from the United States to the Iranian leaders urging them to "stop interfering in Afghan affairs and effectively end supporting terrorist groups".
"The note was a follow-up of President George W. Bush’s earlier stern warnings to the Iranian clerical leaders to stop at once their provocations in Afghanistan aimed at destabilising the Karzai government or face diplomatic sanctions as a first step", the source told Iran Press Service on condition of anonymity.
In meetings with the highest Iranian authorities, including Ayatollah Ali
Khameneh’i and President Mohammad Khatami, Mr. Annan had received
assurances that the Islamic Republic would respect the present interim
government of Mr. Hamid Karzai and work for the restoration of peace and
stability in this neighbouring nation.
At the Tokyo meeting of international donors to the war-shattered Afghanistan, Iran pledged 500 millions US Dollars in five years.
But Iranian and foreign economists immediately commented the promise as both "irrational" and "crude" in regard of the nation’s "catastrophic economic situation".
"How could Iran give 100 millions of dollars to Afghanistan when the government is incapable of paying the workers, teachers, government employees", one analyst noted.
However, observers said the pledges were aimed at "cooling down" the mounting anti-Iranian mood in the Bush Administration.
"Though the staunchly anti-American Iranian leader told that Iran would support the peace and stability in the war-torn Afghanistan, but the fact remains that Hojjatoleslam Ebrahim Hoseini, the leader’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Hojjatoleslam Ali Akbar Nateq-Noori, the leader’s top adviser both had described Mr. (Hamid) Karzai as an American puppet and accused Washington to work for the installation of a secular, anti-Islamic regime in Kabol", one Iranian analyst told IPS.
In his meeting with Annan, Mr. Khameneh’i did not hesitated to describe the United States and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as "terrorist state and organisation" and termed as "lamentable" the situation of the Taleban prisoners held at the Guantanamo base in Cuba.
"The American secret service (CIA) was one of the main centres behind the terrorism", Ayatollah Khameneh’I observed and referring to the terrorist acts by CIA in several parts of the world, he added that the "United States in itself can be considered a meaning of the terrorism", the official news agency IRNA quoted him as having said to Mr. Annan.
As Mr. Khameneh’i was expressing concern for the fate of the Taleban and some Al-Qa’eda prisoners, the police was brutally dispersing some fifty members of the families of hundreds of Iranian political prisoners held at unknown places, subject to the most inhuman physical and psychological tortures and while thousands of teachers were protesting against poor wages and difficult material situation.
Though Iran was among the first nations to condemn the 11 September attacks on the United States, operations attributed to Mr. Osama Ben Laden and his "Al-Qa’eda" organisation, but Mr. Khameneh’i became the first leader to condemn American military intervention in Afghanistan and refused to join the US-led international campaign against terrorism.
This point was reiterated when, according to IRNA, the leader, during his meeting with Mr. Annan, expressed dissatisfaction with the American troops actions in Afghanistan and said this would not be in the interests of the Afghan people", according to the agency.
The Islamic Republic is also believed by American intelligence community to have offered sanctuary to some "Al-Qa’eda" militias with the objective to send them back into Afghanistan to fight the UN-backed Administration in Kabol.
According to the reports from Afghan sources, Iran is sending arms, ammunitions, money and "agents provocateurs" to local commanders in the Heart Province to stir unrest
Qandahar Governor Gol Agha had repeated earlier accusations that Iran was providing arms and money to Esma’il Khan, the Governor of Heart, "to achieve its nefarious designs" in Afghanistan.
But Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, speaking at a press conference with Annan, denied allegations that Iran was pumping weapons to eastern Afghan warlords and stressed on the "backing" Tehran was giving to the Karzai interim government.
Asked by reporters about the reports, Mr. Annan, who had issued a stern warning against foreign meddling in Afghanistan, replied diplomatically that he had "no independent information". ENDS ANNAN IRAN AFQANESTAN 27102