By Bisola Adeyemo
The Afghanistan new government (Taliban) has revealed its decisions on cutting tariffs on imports of fuel from Iran and other neighbouring countries.
The new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (Taliban), the group who seized power in Afghanistan last week announced this in an official document made available to Reuters on Monday.
The document specified a 70% discount on tariffs on imports of gasoline, diesel and LPG from the neighbouring countries to Afghanistan.
The price of gasoline in Afghanistan reached $900 per tonne as many Afghans drove out of cities, fearing reprisals and a return to a harsh version of Islamic law the Taliban imposed when in power two decades ago.
To counter the price spike, the new Taliban asked Shi’ite Iran to keep the borders open for traders.
Hamid Hosseini, board member and spokesperson of Iran’s Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters’ Union, in Tehran, also announced the message sent to the Iranian government saying “you can continue the exports of petroleum products.”
The Taliban 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 (IRICA), which is a part of the government, lifted a ban on fuel exports to Afghanistan, which had been in place since Aug. 6 because of Iran’s concerns about the safety of trading in the country, Hosseini said.