TEHRAN, Dec 26, 2010 (AFP) - Afghan Vice President Mohammad Qasim Fahim said on Sunday that Iran has agreed to lift a ban on fuel tankers crossing into Afghanistan that has left hundreds of trucks stranded at the border.
"We discussed the fuel tankers which have been stopped at the border and agreements were reached (to allow them) to enter Afghanistan, so that the fuel problem is resolved," ISNA news agency quoted Qasim Fahim as saying at a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart in Tehran.
Iran has in the past three weeks prevented around 1,600 trucks from crossing the border, believing that they are being used to supply US-led NATO troops fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Kabul says the tankers are bringing fuel to meet the increased demand by ordinary Afghans during the winter months.
The halting of the tankers had threatened to push up already-skyrocketing fuel prices in Afghanistan at the start of winter.
Around 30 percent of Afghanistan's fuel is thought to come through transport routes from Iran, with much of the rest coming through the central Asian republics which border Afghanistan.
Qasim Fahim arrived in Tehran on Saturday on an unannounced visit.
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