The ruling Afghan Taliban, through top spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, declared in an interview on Sunday it is prepared to offer its “full support” to Iran in the event of an American attack.
Mujahid reportedly made the remarks in an interview with Radio Iran that he published on his social media accounts. He was responding to questions about tension between Iran in the United States and ongoing attempts to organize talks between the leaders of both states.
The government of Iran is currently engaging in a preliminary negotiation process with representatives of President Donald Trump, discussing during a first round of talks in early February the parameters for any potential future talks through an intermediary in Oman. Subsequent reports suggest that Iran, embroiled in a bloody crackdown against protesters and dissidents generally that some suggest has resulted in tens of thousands massacred, is seeking to negotiate an alleviation in the strict sanctions program it is facing through negotiations with the Trump administration.
Sanctions on Iran intensified significantly last year after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found the country in breach of international law on nuclear energy development, triggering “snapback” sanctions paused during President Barack Obama’s tenure.
Afghanistan borders Iran to its west and shared a violent jihadist terror structure as the undisputed government of its country. While the Taliban and Iranian “supreme leader” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei share a jihadist ideology and hatred of the United States, they have faced some neighborly tensions, particularly over control of water supplies on their mutual border and on immigration enforcement. Mujahid’s reported support for Tehran appears to be a thaw following belligerent comments on both sides over the control of water in the Helmand River.
According to translations of Mujahid’s comments in various outlets, both favorable to the Islamist regime in Tehran and in opposition, Mujahid offered solidarity to the Iranian government but emphasized that the Taliban would not prefer to see war between America and Iran. The Iran-friendly outlet Al Mayadeen translated Mujahid as stating that the “people of Afghanistan,” by which he meant the oppressive Taliban regime in charge, would “stand in solidarity and offer full support to their Iranian brethren” in the event of a war with America.
“The people of Afghanistan will offer various forms of solidarity and support to their Iranian brothers,” Al Mayadeen quoted Mujahid as stating.
The Afghan outlet Khaama Press paraphrased Mujahid’s comments similarly, stating that the spokesman said the Taliban would “show support and possible cooperation with Iran in requested” in the event of American military action.
“Mujahid added that Iran had demonstrated resilience in recent conflicts and expressed hope that war between Washington and Tehran could still be avoided,” Khaama added. “He stressed that Afghanistan does not favor war and prefers peaceful solutions as negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program continue amid regional uncertainty.”
Taliban security guards an entrance gate of the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (PVPV) during a meeting with scholars, traders and local community leaders in Kabul on October 16, 2024. (WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)
The Arabic-language outlet Shafaq News reported on Sunday that Mujahid’s comments coincided with remarks by Taliban “defense minister” Mohammad Yaqoob on the same day in which he stated that, which the Taliban’s Afghanistan allegedly “poses no threat to any party,” the Taliban would “cooperate” if necessary with Iran to ward off an American attack. That new agency also quoted Mujahid as saying in the Iranian broadcast that the Taliban believes “Iran is capable of defending itself,” suggesting the Taliban is not expecting to be involved in a direct war with the United States over Iran.
The second Trump term has been a fraught one for the leaders of Iran. After being found in violation of international law by the IAEA, Iran experienced multiple airstrikes in June 2025, which Trump ordered, on its three most important uranium enrichment sites – in Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan.
“There will be either peace, or there will be tragedy for Iran, far greater than we have witnessed over the last eight days. Remember, there are many targets left,” Trump said at the time.
The American president is currently pursuing new talks with Tehran to prevent the need for more airstrikes. According to a report by the Emirati newspaper The National published on Sunday, the Iranian government is seeking to use the talks to boost its economy, potentially by easing sanctions. It remains unclear publicly what Iran is willing to give up in talks to result in the lifting of the sanctions, as its negotiators have insisted that Iran will not give up its illicit nuclear weapons program.
Discussing the talks on Thursday, President Trump described a resolution to the tensions between Washington and Iran as urgent.
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“We have to make a deal, otherwise it’s going to be very traumatic — very traumatic,” Trump told reporters. “I don’t want that to happen, but we have to make a deal.”
The president asserted that he was hoping that such an agreement could arise “over the next month” and that failure of these negotiations could trigger a “phase two” of attacks following the airstrikes in June.
“They should agree very quickly,” he insisted.
Iran’s relationship with the Afghan Taliban has been a complicated one. The Iranian government, in solidarity against the United States, was among the first to recognize the Taliban jihadist organization as the “interim” government of Afghanistan. It has also steadily maintained a diplomatic presence in Kabul. The two neighboring countries have struggled to maintain the peace, however, as Iran began to deport Afghans migrants in its territory and as the two accused each other of hoarding water along their arid mutual border.
In 2023, for example, Taliban jihadists began flooding social media with videos declaring their plan to “conquer Iran” in response to the Iranian government pressuring the Taliban to give water rights to Iranians. The Taliban has also struggled to process Afghan citizens deported by the hundreds of thousands from Iran over the past year; Iran was estimated to be housing as many as 4 million Afghan refugees before its mass deportation campaign in 2025.
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