The Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of China’s Foreign Ministry Liu Jinsong on Tuesday met with Bilal Karimi, the Islamic Emirate’s ambassador to China, for discussions on the development and strengthening of political relations between the two countries.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) embassy in Beijing said in a statement that the two sides also discussed the continuation of trade, strengthening the economy and positive bilateral interactions with the region and neighboring countries, along with political, economic, commercial and transit cooperation.

Liu appreciated the efforts of the IEA regarding the activation of the Wakhan Corridor between China and Afghanistan and has shown his country's readiness to take gradual steps to activate this corridor.

He added that the President of China has scrapped export customs tariffs for about 40 countries, including Afghanistan, effective January next year.

He said this would be of particular help to Afghan traders.

He stated that Central Asia’s oil and gas companies will be encouraged to expand and accelerate the process of oil extraction from the Amu Darya oil field and the ongoing work of the Mes Aynak copper mining project.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has reported that 60 percent of returnees have been deported forcibly from Iran, and that 841,521 returnees received assistance from the organization.

In a report released on October 14, the IOM stated an unprecedented rise in the number of Afghan migrants returning to their homeland, both forcibly and voluntarily.

According to the report, 60 percent of Afghan returnees from Iran were forced to return, while 40 percent returned voluntarily.

The IOM added that from January 2023 to July of this year, at least 1.7 million Afghan migrants have returned from Iran.

This organization has called on all countries to immediately stop the forced return of Afghans, both in the short term and in the long term, until the appropriate grounds are provided.

Meanwhile, the general commander of Iran's police force Ahmad Reza Radan said that they will deport two million illegal immigrants, the majority of whom will be Afghans.

"Unauthorized citizens cannot stay in the country under any circumstances,” said Reza Radan.

Acting Minister of Refugees and Repatriation, Khalil Rahman Haqqani, met Tuesday with Iran's ambassador and special envoy for Afghanistan Hassan Kazemi Qomi and asked Iran to deal with Afghan migrants until suitable conditions for their return are provided.

In addition, a delegation from the Ministry of Refugees is sent to Iran to closely examine the problems of immigrants and to discuss with Iranian authorities ways to solve their problems.

Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs Abdul Salam Hanafi has requested the international community's cooperation with Afghanistan to prevent its young people from joining “sedition groups”.

Speaking at an event on Tuesday in Kabul, Hanafi also said that if the international community cooperates with Afghanistan in the fight against drugs and the implementation of development projects, the neighboring countries and the world will be freed from drugs.

He also demanded the release of Afghanistan's foreign exchange reserves and stated that banking sanctions have caused traders to face challenges importing medicines.

He stated that four decades of war, climate change, natural disasters and forced deportation of migrants have resulted in Afghanistan needing help from the international community.

He added that even in remote areas, mothers die during childbirth due to the lack of healthcare centers.