(United Nations) Russia-backed China on Monday blocked a US draft resolution at the UN Security Council, providing for a mechanism for humanitarian exceptions to economic sanctions imposed on Afghanistan, a- we learned Monday from diplomatic sources.
“They want the deletion” of a paragraph allowing the Sanctions Committee responsible for that country to provide “exemptions from the freezing of assets” if it deems that “such a waiver is necessary to facilitate further aid to the Afghanistan, ”a diplomat said on condition of anonymity.
China, “opposed in principle to sanctions,” is “against a case-by-case exemption mechanism,” another diplomat confirmed, also asking not to be identified.
The United States was hoping for approval on Monday of their project by the 14 other members of the Security Council, to put it to a vote on Tuesday, according to diplomatic sources.
“There are currently no humanitarian exemptions from the sanctions regime” imposed on the Taliban in 2015 and aid workers having to “carry out financial transactions with ministries headed by people under sanctions would violate [ces] sanctions, ”said a third diplomat, also on condition of anonymity.
After the Taliban returned to power in mid-August, the United States froze nearly $ 9.5 billion from the Afghan Central Bank.
The World Bank, which suspended its aid to Kabul at the end of August, announced on December 10 humanitarian aid of $ 280 million to be paid to UNICEF and the World Food Program so that these two agencies can distribute them in Afghanistan.
But this amount is largely insufficient as this country is on the brink of financial and economic collapse.
“The need for liquidity and stabilization of the banking system is now urgent, not only to save the Afghan people, but also to allow humanitarian organizations to intervene,” said the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs on Sunday. , Martin Griffiths, at a ministerial meeting in Pakistan.
“Some funds have been released by the World Bank, but we need a lot more for the funding that has been frozen at this Bank and we need the contribution of donors”, argues a UN official speaking under on condition of anonymity.
In addition to China and Russia, India and several traditional allies of the United States in the Security Council, including France and the United Kingdom, also expressed reservations to the American draft resolution, according to diplomatic sources.
These countries have “concerns related to a possible misuse of exemptions without a solid control mechanism and without time limit,” said a diplomat on condition of anonymity.
The Chinese and US diplomatic missions did not respond to a request for comment.