PESHAWAR: The Taliban has called on the United States and international financial institutions to unfreeze Afghanistan’s national assets confiscated after the fall of previous government.
The Taliban officials told the media that frozen assets belongs to Afghans and should immediately be returned. A spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Economy Ahmad Wali Haqmal said, “It is illegal to freeze Afghan national assets. It is a violation of international law. We want our nation’s wealth back.”
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A senior central bank official has called on European countries, including Germany, to returns Afghans wealth to prevent the Afghan economy from collapse and resolved the current challenges. The Taliban officials warned that in case of economic crisis, more Afghans would migrate to European nations.
After the Taliban seized power on 15 August, a number of international financial institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), froze $9.5 billions of Afghan dollars and suspended aid to Afghanistan. There has been growing public concern over the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
The Taliban have repeatedly demanded the release of nearly Rs9.5 billion in frozen reserves, most of which are held in the United States. Last week, US officials again refused to unfreeze the reserves. A deputy secretary of the Treasury Department said it was important to keep sanctions on the Taliban in place, but that legal avenues should be provided to continue providing humanitarian aid to Afghans.
On the other hand, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called on IMF officials to devise a mechanism for transferring cash to Afghanistan. The agency has cut off the Taliban’s access to $440 million in emergency aid since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan.
UN official, who did not want to be named, told Reuters that “immediate steps” are needed to unfreeze Afghanistan’s reserves. Earlier, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said his country would continue providing humanitarian assistance to Afghans, but could not give a “blank check” to the Taliban in the name of aid.