(Washington) The United States on Friday opposed an end of disallowance to the Taliban, who had called in an open letter to the United States Congress to release the Afghan assets frozen since their seizure of power in mid-August, reaffirming that they should d ‘first to “deserve” Washington’s support.
“The Taliban’s letter to Congress this week provides a misreading of the facts about the economic and humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan,” US envoy Thomas West replied on Twitter.
“Afghanistan was unfortunately already suffering from a terrible humanitarian crisis before mid-August, aggravated by war, years of drought and the pandemic,” he said.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the government established by the Taliban, but not recognized by the international community, Amir Khan Muttaqi, affirmed Wednesday in his letter that “the roots” of the problem go back to “the freezing of assets” by the American government, and asked that these sanctions “be lifted”.
He assured, in support of this request, that the Islamists who now lead the country are working for “good governance”, “security” and “transparency”.
Washington froze nearly $ 9.5 billion from the Afghan Central Bank. The economy that depended on international aid collapsed, with civil servants unpaid for months and the public treasury unable to pay for imports.
The American envoy stressed that the United States had “clearly warned the Taliban for years” that in the event of a seizure of power by force, “the crucial non-humanitarian aid from the international community would cease”. “This is what happened,” he added.
“Legitimacy and support must be earned through action”, insisted Thomas West, who reiterates the conditions set by the Americans: fight against terrorism, establishment of an “inclusive” government, “respect for the rights of minorities , women and girls ”, and“ equal access to education and employment ”.
He assured that Washington would continue to maintain a “lucid and frank dialogue with the Taliban”. In the meantime, the United States will continue to provide the Afghans with strictly humanitarian aid, he added.