Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Economic Deputy Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on Friday to discuss bilateral relations and areas of mutual cooperation.

According to a statement from Baradar’s office, the Afghan official extended condolences to the Iranian government and people over the death of Iran’s former Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, before holding talks on strengthening ties between the two neighboring countries.

Baradar said Afghanistan and Iran share deep historical, cultural, and economic links and have significant common interests in various fields. He also reiterated the Islamic Emirate’s position on the recent US-Israeli attacks on Iran, describing them as illegitimate and stating that the Afghan government had condemned the strikes.

For his part, Pezeshkian highlighted the close and friendly relations between the two nations and said both governments should make full use of existing opportunities for the benefit of their peoples.

The Iranian president described the expansion of relations with Afghanistan as a key priority for his administration and stressed the importance of utilizing all available capacities to deepen bilateral cooperation.

US President Donald Trump has again criticized former President Joe Biden’s handling of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, arguing that Washington should have retained control of Bagram Air Base while pulling troops out.

Speaking in an interview with CNBC, Trump said the US military was rebuilt during his first term and accused the Biden administration of abandoning large amounts of military equipment during the 2021 withdrawal.

“Biden gave so much away in Afghanistan,” Trump said. “We left brand new military vehicles, we left tanks, we left airplanes.”

Trump said he supported ending the US military presence in Afghanistan but argued the withdrawal should have been carried out differently.

“Getting out of Afghanistan was fine, but they should have kept Bagram, the Air Force base. They could have kept it very easily. We would have gotten out with dignity and strength,” he said.

He also claimed that if he had been president, the United States would either have won the war or withdrawn under better conditions.

“I would have won it, or gotten out,” Trump said.

Drawing comparisons with past US military conflicts, Trump said he had no intention of engaging in another prolonged war.

“We were in Vietnam for 19 years. We were in Afghanistan for like ten years. We were in the Korean War forever,” he said. “We were many, many years in every war. I’ve been there [in Iran] for four months. What have I done? I’ve defeated them militarily.”

Afghanistan has been ranked last in the 2026 Global Passport Index, according to Global Citizen Solutions.

The index evaluates passports based on visa-free access, investment attractiveness, and quality of life. Afghanistan scored 23.10 out of 100, placing it at the bottom among 197 countries and territories assessed.

The report shows a wide gap between Afghanistan and the world’s strongest passport, with Sweden topping the ranking at 96.05 points. Other top-ranked passports include Switzerland, Finland, Germany, and the Netherlands.

The index highlights that Afghanistan continues to have one of the weakest passports globally, reflecting limited international mobility compared to most countries.

Somalia, South Sudan, Yemen, and Syria also feature among the weakest passports worldwide.