That represents a 15 percent decrease in territory held compared with the same time in 2015, the agency said.
Commenting on the released data, the former governor of the country's Herat province Mohammad Yunus Fakur blamed the US and NATO who have failed to stabilize the country throughout the long-term presence on the ground.
"There is an ongoing fight against terrorists in Afghanistan headed by NATO and the US. The Afghan government is operating solely under their control," he told Sputnik.
"The war in our country has been raging for a long time, and still there is no peace as such in almost any province," he added.
"The Afghan people are convinced that it is the fault of the US and NATO who were either unable to prevent this or have not made it their aim," Mohammad Yunus Fakur said.
However he further noted that it is impossible to throw them out of Afghanistan as the country's government has signed a Security and Defense Cooperation Agreement, under which both US and NATO military contingents have the right to be stationed on Afghan territory.
In a separate comment on the issue, an economist from the capital Kabul Jamsheed Shahabi recalls that it was the USSR which developed the country's major industries.
For example, he says, it constructed, among others, a 71-meter-long canal in the Eastern province of Nangarhar with the only dam in the province, the Duranta Dam constructed by the Soviet companies. Puli Khumri — II hydro-power plant, the Naghlu Dam and Naghlu hydro-power plant on the Kabul river, TPP (thermal power plant) with nitrogen fertilizer plant and much-much more.
"When the political influence of Russia's predecessor, the USSR was especially strong, our economy was flourishing. The Soviet experts contributed much to the electrification of our country by constructing large-scale projects. These projects now can become a foundation for the implementation of Russia's advanced technologies into the Afghan economy," he suggested.
Kabul-based political analyst Mahfooz Alhaq meanwhile suggested that future security of Afghanistan will depend on the relationship between Russia and the US.
"The stronger the relations between the US and Russia, the more secure will be Afghanistan," he told Sputnik.
"It is very important that Moscow and Washington are acting hand in hand, granting support in training and re-arming the Afghan police and National Security forces," he said.
The political analyst further noted that both Afghan police and the country's army have sufficient potential to fight terrorism, however it needs to be developed.
He also added that his home country did not forget the aid that Russia recently provided to the armed forces by sending 10,000 Kalashnikov machine guns. He believes that the US should value its relationship with Russia through opening a dialogue and lifting the sanctions on Moscow.
Meanwhile Ahmadullah Moahed, deputy of the Wolesi Jirga, the lower chamber of the country's parliament, the National Assembly, from the Nuristan province noted sincere tone in the phone conversation between Presidents Trump and Putin, which gave hope to the Afghan people.
"The dialogue between Trump and Putin has been perceived as good news which will bring peace to the world," he told Sputnik.
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