Sher Malang
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13 October 2013 /ABDULLAH BOZKURT, HERAT
Iran is deliberately suffocating the crucial trade link between Turkey and Afghanistan, two close allies that are only separated by a landmass of vast Iranian territory neighboring both countries on the east-west corridor.
The impediments the Iranian regime has been placing on trade between Turkey and Afghanistan across its land, in clear violation of existing agreements, make it very difficult for Turkish companies to ship goods to Afghanistan and from there to Central Asian markets. It also hampers Afghanistan's access to Turkish and Western markets while thwarting the fulfillment of Afghanistan's potential to become a re-export hub in the heart of Asia.
Iranian attempts to drive a wedge in trade between Turkey and Afghanistan deal a major blow to connectivity in the region, one of the key themes considered necessary by the US and its allies in the region for rebuilding the Afghan economy on the eve of the drawdown of US and international forces from the country.
This issue was recently tackled at a conference of the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies (AISS) in Herat, the third largest city in Afghanistan and one with more stability and prosperity compared with other parts of the war-torn country. As Herat is only an hour's drive from the Iranian border, it was the perfect place to raise the connectivity issue between Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. The residents of Herat share culture, language and religion with their immediate neighbor, Iran, yet they are unfairly prevented from developing their true potential because of barriers on the Iranian side of the border.
This was one point in the keynote speech delivered by Dr. Rangin Dadfar Spanta, Afghan President Hamid Karzai's national security adviser and former foreign minister, at the conference. He said, Sadly, despite sharing a common civilization, culture and heritage, we are confronted by a multitude of challenges and failures in mutual understanding and our constant dialogue. Then he cited some encounters with Iranians to back his point.
Spanta's open references to Iran on more than one occasion reflect the anxiety and apprehension in the Afghan government about Iranian ambitions amid American overtures towards the new leadership in Iran and ahead of the US's drawdown of its forces. The Afghan official focused on the lost opportunities for cooperation and integration despite abundant natural and human resources. Our transportation links are not wellconnected. Our ports are either underused or are used for geostrategic and geo-economic isolation, containment and market capture, he emphasized.
In fact, what Spanta describes is exactly what has happened to the trade between Turkey and Afghanistan. Since Iran has started to obstruct the land corridor between Turkey and Afghanistan, trade has suffered tremendously from this prevention of the volume reaching its full potential. Iran has used this opportunity to capture part of the Afghan market while eliminating competition from Turkey. Much poorer quality Iranian goods flooded western Afghanistan, including Herat, at the expense of better and more durable products from Turkey.
These numbers are reflected in trade patterns as well. For example, in 2006, the trade volume between Turkey and Afghanistan was $100 million, double the Iran-Afghanistan trade volume that year. Last year, the trade volume between Iran and Afghanistan reached $2.2 billion, far exceeding the Turkey-Afghanistan trade volume of $296 million. This was partly attributed to the obstructed land corridor between Turkey and Afghanistan, with Iran creating a series of barriers at its customs and border gates, be it high fees and taxes or bureaucratic impediments.
In a veiled criticism of Iran's behavior, the Turkish ambassador in Kabul, Başat Öztürk, said Afghanistan's neighbors need to change their mindset from destructive to constructive. We should be talking about common and shared interests, he underlined, adding that reviving the old silk trade route would be beneficial to all countries in the region.
Parmendra Kumar Singh, the director of the United Service Institution Of India, also said that connectivity is crucial for the Afghan economy, stressing that mineral resources and energy will be important for Afghanis. The economy will drive security and politics, he noted, pointing out that Afghanistan needs to go beyond its own neighborhood to survive economically. With regard to Iran's sustained impediments on trade between Turkey and Afghanistan, Singh suggested that political pressure should be brought to bear upon Iran by all countries interested in seeing the Afghan economy flourish.
The problem for the Iranians, however, is that Afghanistan represents not only a market but also a strategic backwater from which they can meddle in the politics of Central Asia, including Tajikistan, a mostly Persian-speaking country with a shared culture and history. We do pray and hope that the Turkish model prevails in this region, rather than the Iranian-dominated Mullah version, one Tajik official said, speaking to Sunday's Zaman on condition of anonymity because of the issue's sensitivity. If the Turkish model collapses, we are doomed to fail as well, he warned.
The Afghan people are frustrated to see their country being used and abused for proxy battles between regional and global powers. The never-ending wars and proxy battles before, during and after the Cold War have exhausted its national resources, including its human potential. That sentiment was reflected by one Afghan participant in the conference. Mahmoud Saikal, former deputy minister at the Foreign Ministry of Afghanistan, has warned that the geostrategic location of his country connecting Central Asia to Iran as well as Russia to the Indian Ocean puts Afghanistan in one of the most complex parts of the world. This is an asset as well as a liability, he underlined, adding, If we are not careful enough, this geostrategic location can quickly turn into a liability.
It is obvious that Iran sees Afghanistan from a geostrategic vantage point, trying to sever the trade links between Turkey, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Tehran has traditionally seen western Afghanistan as part of the Iranian hinterland and a former Iranian territory. By propagating the political Shiite ideology in Afghan provinces as well as resorting to proxy battles, including lending support to its archenemy, the Taliban, at times as well as to the Karzai government, Iran wants to keep Afghanistan divided and unstable, very much as it has in Lebanon through Hezbollah or in Iraq through Nouri al-Maliki's Dawa Party. The priority is western Afghanistan, which Iran considers to be in its sphere of influence. It has no interest in seeing Turkey or anybody else cultivating trade and business ties with Afghanistan or challenging its influence there.
I believe Iran is the main threat to stability in the region, and that is why it has been attempting to prevent Turkey from developing stronger economic, political and cultural ties with Afghanistan. Unlike Iran, Turkey does not have any hidden agenda in Afghanistan, Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, head of the Center for International Strategic and Security Studies (USGAM), told Sunday's Zaman.
Another Turkish analyst who attended the Herat conference agreed with Erol's assessment. Selçuk Çolakoğlu, deputy director of Turkey's International Strategic Research Organization (USAK), told the audience in Herat that Iranian impediments are seriously damaging the development of Afghanistan. Both rail and road links between Turkey and Afghanistan via Iran can bring huge benefits to all countries in the region. We need to work on eliminating barriers, he said.
Source: Iran hampers trade link between Turkey and Afghanistan - Today's Zaman, your gateway to Turkish daily news
Iran is deliberately suffocating the crucial trade link between Turkey and Afghanistan, two close allies that are only separated by a landmass of vast Iranian territory neighboring both countries on the east-west corridor.
The impediments the Iranian regime has been placing on trade between Turkey and Afghanistan across its land, in clear violation of existing agreements, make it very difficult for Turkish companies to ship goods to Afghanistan and from there to Central Asian markets. It also hampers Afghanistan's access to Turkish and Western markets while thwarting the fulfillment of Afghanistan's potential to become a re-export hub in the heart of Asia.
Iranian attempts to drive a wedge in trade between Turkey and Afghanistan deal a major blow to connectivity in the region, one of the key themes considered necessary by the US and its allies in the region for rebuilding the Afghan economy on the eve of the drawdown of US and international forces from the country.
This issue was recently tackled at a conference of the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies (AISS) in Herat, the third largest city in Afghanistan and one with more stability and prosperity compared with other parts of the war-torn country. As Herat is only an hour's drive from the Iranian border, it was the perfect place to raise the connectivity issue between Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. The residents of Herat share culture, language and religion with their immediate neighbor, Iran, yet they are unfairly prevented from developing their true potential because of barriers on the Iranian side of the border.
This was one point in the keynote speech delivered by Dr. Rangin Dadfar Spanta, Afghan President Hamid Karzai's national security adviser and former foreign minister, at the conference. He said, Sadly, despite sharing a common civilization, culture and heritage, we are confronted by a multitude of challenges and failures in mutual understanding and our constant dialogue. Then he cited some encounters with Iranians to back his point.
Spanta's open references to Iran on more than one occasion reflect the anxiety and apprehension in the Afghan government about Iranian ambitions amid American overtures towards the new leadership in Iran and ahead of the US's drawdown of its forces. The Afghan official focused on the lost opportunities for cooperation and integration despite abundant natural and human resources. Our transportation links are not wellconnected. Our ports are either underused or are used for geostrategic and geo-economic isolation, containment and market capture, he emphasized.
In fact, what Spanta describes is exactly what has happened to the trade between Turkey and Afghanistan. Since Iran has started to obstruct the land corridor between Turkey and Afghanistan, trade has suffered tremendously from this prevention of the volume reaching its full potential. Iran has used this opportunity to capture part of the Afghan market while eliminating competition from Turkey. Much poorer quality Iranian goods flooded western Afghanistan, including Herat, at the expense of better and more durable products from Turkey.
These numbers are reflected in trade patterns as well. For example, in 2006, the trade volume between Turkey and Afghanistan was $100 million, double the Iran-Afghanistan trade volume that year. Last year, the trade volume between Iran and Afghanistan reached $2.2 billion, far exceeding the Turkey-Afghanistan trade volume of $296 million. This was partly attributed to the obstructed land corridor between Turkey and Afghanistan, with Iran creating a series of barriers at its customs and border gates, be it high fees and taxes or bureaucratic impediments.
In a veiled criticism of Iran's behavior, the Turkish ambassador in Kabul, Başat Öztürk, said Afghanistan's neighbors need to change their mindset from destructive to constructive. We should be talking about common and shared interests, he underlined, adding that reviving the old silk trade route would be beneficial to all countries in the region.
Parmendra Kumar Singh, the director of the United Service Institution Of India, also said that connectivity is crucial for the Afghan economy, stressing that mineral resources and energy will be important for Afghanis. The economy will drive security and politics, he noted, pointing out that Afghanistan needs to go beyond its own neighborhood to survive economically. With regard to Iran's sustained impediments on trade between Turkey and Afghanistan, Singh suggested that political pressure should be brought to bear upon Iran by all countries interested in seeing the Afghan economy flourish.
The problem for the Iranians, however, is that Afghanistan represents not only a market but also a strategic backwater from which they can meddle in the politics of Central Asia, including Tajikistan, a mostly Persian-speaking country with a shared culture and history. We do pray and hope that the Turkish model prevails in this region, rather than the Iranian-dominated Mullah version, one Tajik official said, speaking to Sunday's Zaman on condition of anonymity because of the issue's sensitivity. If the Turkish model collapses, we are doomed to fail as well, he warned.
The Afghan people are frustrated to see their country being used and abused for proxy battles between regional and global powers. The never-ending wars and proxy battles before, during and after the Cold War have exhausted its national resources, including its human potential. That sentiment was reflected by one Afghan participant in the conference. Mahmoud Saikal, former deputy minister at the Foreign Ministry of Afghanistan, has warned that the geostrategic location of his country connecting Central Asia to Iran as well as Russia to the Indian Ocean puts Afghanistan in one of the most complex parts of the world. This is an asset as well as a liability, he underlined, adding, If we are not careful enough, this geostrategic location can quickly turn into a liability.
It is obvious that Iran sees Afghanistan from a geostrategic vantage point, trying to sever the trade links between Turkey, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Tehran has traditionally seen western Afghanistan as part of the Iranian hinterland and a former Iranian territory. By propagating the political Shiite ideology in Afghan provinces as well as resorting to proxy battles, including lending support to its archenemy, the Taliban, at times as well as to the Karzai government, Iran wants to keep Afghanistan divided and unstable, very much as it has in Lebanon through Hezbollah or in Iraq through Nouri al-Maliki's Dawa Party. The priority is western Afghanistan, which Iran considers to be in its sphere of influence. It has no interest in seeing Turkey or anybody else cultivating trade and business ties with Afghanistan or challenging its influence there.
I believe Iran is the main threat to stability in the region, and that is why it has been attempting to prevent Turkey from developing stronger economic, political and cultural ties with Afghanistan. Unlike Iran, Turkey does not have any hidden agenda in Afghanistan, Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, head of the Center for International Strategic and Security Studies (USGAM), told Sunday's Zaman.
Another Turkish analyst who attended the Herat conference agreed with Erol's assessment. Selçuk Çolakoğlu, deputy director of Turkey's International Strategic Research Organization (USAK), told the audience in Herat that Iranian impediments are seriously damaging the development of Afghanistan. Both rail and road links between Turkey and Afghanistan via Iran can bring huge benefits to all countries in the region. We need to work on eliminating barriers, he said.
Source: Iran hampers trade link between Turkey and Afghanistan - Today's Zaman, your gateway to Turkish daily news
