Kabul turns to Russia after Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia refrain from listening Afghanistan’s request to revive talks Pakistan

Monitoring Desk:

Ahmad Massoud, son of Ahmad Shah Massoud, along with a group of Afghan former mujahideen was given state protocol when he reached Tehran to pay respects to the martyred Leader Ayatollah Khamnei in Tehran while Afghan Taliban regime was led by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs, and Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. It is pertinent to mention that invitation was given to Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund.

Ahmad Massoud, son of Ahmad Shah Massoud, along with a group of Afghan mujahideen, paid respects to the martyred Leader Ayatollah Khamnei in Tehran. pic.twitter.com/Y2kuxVWbko

— National Resistance Front (NRF) 🇦🇫 (@NRFMediaCell) July 3, 2026

Tehran Times reported that Ahmad Massoud, leader of the National Resistance Front (NRF) of Afghanistan, traveled to Tehran in early July 2026 to pay his respects to the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. He was joined by other Afghan political figures, such as Mohammad Mohaqiq, to attend the official memorial and funeral ceremonies held at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla. The attendance of Ahmad Massoud and other Afghan resistance leaders drew significant regional attention. This was largely because the Iranian government concurrently hosted rival delegations at the high-profile tribute events, including a group representing the Taliban, which remains in conflict with the NRF.

It may be mentioned today’s Northern Afghanistan comprising of today’s Balkh, Kunduz, Samangan, Baghlan and Takhar had been ‘Ariana’ and was spread over Eastern Iran, Southern Turkmenistan and some portions of modern Tajikistan but a new state was crafted with the help of British Empire having an understanding with Russian Empire during 1919-24 but historic and cultural, ethnic and linguistic relations of former Ariana continued with Iranian society.