UN calls on Tehran for cooperation in Afghan crisis

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Kenzo Oshima on Wednesday met Iranian President Mohammad Khatami in an effort to shore up regional assistance to the Afghan people. The UN is poising itself to assist the most vulnerable people inside Afghanistan, as well to provide more support to neighbouring countries already hosting Afghan refugees, in the event of a new influx taking place. Oshima's visit to the region underscores the determination of the world body to avert what it has called "a humanitarian crisis of stunning proportions". "Iran is a key partner for the humanitarian effort in Afghanistan," Oshima told IRIN. "I hope my coming here has highlighted that, and I look forward to continued cooperation with the government here," he added. Oshima was dispatched to the region by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to assess UN preparedness on the ground and to meet key regional leaders, including Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, before travelling to Iran on Tuesday. Last week, the Secretary-General launched an appeal for US $584 million in international aid to help Afghan people cope with this latest crisis to beset this country following the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September. According to the UN, these funds are needed to face a worst-case scenario in which up to 7.5 million Afghans within the country could be vulnerable. It is projected that up to 1.5 million people of this total may attempt to flee to Pakistan and Iran, joining some four million other Afghan refugees already hosted there. Oshima arrived in the Iranian capital from the eastern city of Mashhad, a city many consider could become the country's humanitarian front line in view of its proximity to the Afghan border, some 280 km to the east. Oshima's five-day mission to the region has been intense, but as one UN official told IRIN: "Kenzo Oshima wants the message sent that we are acting fast, and contingency plans are in place." During his meetings with the Iranian president and other senior officials, Oshima thanked the Iranian authorities for their continued support and generosity in assisting the Afghan people, emphasising at the same time the need for increased cross-border assistance. The United Nations is placing priority on getting relief and food aid to the people in their normal home areas within Afghanistan, and in view of the fact that Iran shares over 900 km of border with the country, Oshima called on Tehran to facilitate UN efforts. Meanwhile, UN agencies, including the High Commissioner for Refugees, have called on Iran to reopen its borders in the event of Afghans attempting to enter it out of fear of a US-led retaliatory strike against their country, whose government is sheltering Osama bin Laden, Washington's prime suspect in the attacks on the US. However, this is a particularly sensitive political issue for Tehran, and Interior Minister Musavi Lari told Oshima on Wednesday: "Our main concern is the possibility of large numbers of refugees entering our country from Afghanistan." According to the Iranian government, there are already over two million Afghan refugees in the country. Lari maintained that a fresh influx would constitute a major economic burden, adding to the many social problems the country was already having to deal with. While thanking the UN for its humanitarian efforts, he reminded Oshima that Iran no longer had the capacity to host any more refugees. Nonetheless, he expressed his country's readiness to cooperate with the UN in helping Afghans requiring assistance in the border areas. Sharing this view, Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi told Oshima: "The best way to help the Afghan refugees is to help them within Afghanistan." Iran has proposed to set up nine to 12 refugee camps along the border, but the issue has yet to be fully resolved. In a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Oshima told reporters the UN's priority was to get assistance into Afghanistan. "The more we are successful, the less likely [the eventuality] of a refugee problem," he said. In order to perform this task, he said: "Clearly here we need pragmatism, innovation and cooperation." Of the 1.5 million additional refugees projected, some 500,000 may attempt to enter Iran and neighbouring Central Asian states. The UNHCR sub-office head in Mashhad, Toshiro Odashima, told IRIN on Tuesday, however, that there had been no population movements yet.