TEHRAN (Iran News) – In a message on Monday, Iranian Government Spokesman Ali Rabiei wrote, “The assassination of the spokesman of the Afghan government and his entourage was a shocking news for the Iranian government and people.”

“While extending our condolences to the Afghan nation, government, and the families of the victims of the attack, we strongly condemn this terrorist action,” he added.

He deplored the act of assassination as “a disgusting and unacceptable means to achieve political goals that will have no effect other than reinforcing the vicious circle of insecurity and violence, adding, “We assure our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan that we will stand by them in the fight against terrorism, violence, and occupation as long as necessary.”

Zia Wadan, a spokesman for the Afghan Public Protection Force, was on his way to work during the morning rush hour on Sunday when a sticky bomb attached to his car went off, killing Wadan and two others.

There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

Rabiei was responding to a question on the possibility that Iran establishes a joint military base with Russia and China in the Persian Gulf.

“Our friendly relations with Russia and China are at their peak, and we have no restrictions on deepening these relations in all political and economic aspects,” the spokesman said. “As we have stated many times, including during the presentation of the Hormuz peace initiative, security in the Persian Gulf region must be secured by the coastal countries of this region. This is the only way to achieve fair security for all countries and to ensure long-term peace and stability.”

Rabiei pointed out that the region needs to avoid militarization.

“We do not see the militarization of the Persian Gulf region in the interest of any country in the region or the world, and we hope that the United States will finally abandon its extraterritorial adventurism by abandoning its policy of interfering and sowing division among the countries of the region,” the spokesman continued.

Underlining that Iran and Russia have “good cooperation” in various spheres, Rabiei noted, “This cooperation is going on at regional levels in addition to bilateral level. The two countries’ common positions on the fight against terrorism and extremism have provided a common ground for regional cooperation, including in Syria.”

He also said that Iran is not responsible for what is happening in Iraq, underlining that there are a lot of groups that seek to end the occupation in line with their national and ethnic motives. “Their actions have nothing to do with Iran,” Rabiei asserted.

The government spokesman also warned of possible provocations and false flag operations in Iraq aimed at tarnishing Iran’s image, adding that Iran will hold the U.S. regime and its regional clients responsible for these operations.