Iran's energy minister, Ali Akbar Mehrabian, said that his country will not compromise in gaining Iran's water rights from the Helmand River.

Mehrabian told Iranian media that words alone are not enough for the recognition of this country's water rights by the authorities of the current government of Afghanistan, and they should provide Iran's water rights.

“We will not be short in gaining Iran's water rights from the Helmand River. As the Afghan side recognizes the water rights by words, we will be only convinced when this water is released in the amount mentioned in the treaty,” said Ali Akbar Mehrabian.

The Ministry of Energy and Water said in reaction that as a result of drought, the water level in the country's rivers has decreased, and if the water level rises, they will pay Iran's water rights according to the 1351 treaty.

"In Helmand and Nimroz provinces there is no drinking water and people are forced to leave their provinces," said the Ministry of Energy and Water.

Meanwhile, some experts on water issues said that if there is no water in the Helmand River, Iran should not proceed unilaterally.

"The underground water is shared between Iran and Afghanistan, and no one has the right to unilaterally use the underground water of Sistan and the underground water of Sistan and Helmand in general," said Najibullah Saded, a researcher of water resources and the environment.

The issue of water rights from the Helmand River has become a controversial issue between the two neighboring countries, although the Islamic Emirate has always emphasized that it is committed to Iran's water rights according to the treaty of 1351; however, Iran's foreign minister said that Tehran has placed the issue of its water rights from Afghanistan on its agenda legally and politically.