Iran resumes fuel exports to neighbour Afghanistan

LONDON • Iran resumed fuel exports to Afghanistan a few days ago, following a request from the new Afghan government which feels empowered by the United States withdrawal to buy the sanctioned nation's oil more openly, an Iranian official told Reuters.

The Taleban seized power in Afghanistan last week as the US and its allies withdrew their troops after a 20-year war.

The price of petrol in Afghanistan reached US$900 per tonne as many Afghans drove out of cities, fearing reprisals and a return to a harsh version of Islamic law the Taleban imposed when in power two decades ago.

To counter the price spike, the new Taleban government asked Shi'ite Iran to keep the borders open for traders.

"The Taleban sent messages to Iran saying 'you can continue the exports of petroleum products'," Mr Hamid Hosseini, board member and spokesman of Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union, in Teheran, told Reuters.

The Taleban also sent messages to Iranian traders and to an Iranian chamber of commerce, which has close links to the government.

As a result, the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration, which is a part of the Iranian government, lifted a ban on fuel exports to Afghanistan, which had been in place since Aug 6 because of Teheran's concerns about the safety of trading in the country.

Those concerns have been eased by the Taleban's attitude, Mr Hosseini said. He also cited the Taleban's decision to cut tariffs on imports of fuel from Iran and other neighbouring countries.

Iran sits on the world's fourth-largest oil reserves, but the latest round of US sanctions imposed by former president Donald Trump in 2018 has significantly reduced the country's oil exports.

Iran has nevertheless managed some trade, notably by trucking fuel to neighbours such as Afghanistan, and the US troop withdrawal has made leaders of both Iran and Afghanistan less nervous about dealing more openly, Mr Hosseini said.

Meanwhile, the Taleban has appointed an obscure official as the acting central bank governor, amid emerging signs of a financial crunch in Afghanistan, with ATMs running out of cash and prices of essential goods spiralling.

Mr Mohammad Idris, who headed the Taleban's economic commission, will "address the looming banking issues and the problems of the people" as head of Da Afghanistan Bank, Taleban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter.

Little is known about Mr Idris, including his education background and professional qualifications in dealing with monetary, currency and banking policy.

The Taleban's economic commission has operated in the shadows over the past 20 years, with the United Nations Security Council saying its activities included collecting illegal taxes from businesses and farmers to fund the militant group's insurgency.

REUTERS, BLOOMBERG