Pakistan, on Thursday, called on the United States to free Afghanistan's frozen assets of $9 billion, and allow the war-torn country to use the money to prevent a humanitarian crisis. The Troika Plus group comprising Pakistan, China, Russia and the US, met in Islamabad against a backdrop of growing alarm over the situation in Afghanistan.
"I urge the international community to fulfill its collective responsibility to avert a grave humanitarian crisis," Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan wrote on Twitter. He added that Pakistan would provide aid including food, emergency medical supplies and winter shelters.
The Troika said it acknowledged concerns about the "serious liquidity challenges and committed to continue focusing on measures to ease access to legitimate banking services”, Reuters reported. In a joint statement, the countries said they were seriously concerned by the risk of a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and a fresh refugee crisis. They called on the Taliban to implement "moderate and prudent policies", ensure the rights of women and girls and prevent the use of its territory for militant attacks.
"Nobody wishes to see a relapse into civil war, no one wants an economic collapse that will spur instability," Pakistan's foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said.
After the Taliban took over Kabul in August, the Afghan central bank's assets which are primarily held in the US were frozen. The US had refused to release the frozen assets worth billions of dollars adding "it's important to keep pressure on the Taliban". Along with this, bulk of the foreign humanitarian aid that had kept Afghanistan afloat was also stopped in the wake of the Taliban's victory.
Human Rights Watch called on the United Nations and the World Bank recently to address Afghanistan's collapsed economy to prevent widespread famine particularly in the upcoming winter months. The UN world food program has already issued multiple warnings of food insecurity and risk of large-scale deaths from hunger in Afghanistan in the next few months.
On Monday, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres also warned of a collapse. “Right now, with assets frozen and with development aid paused, the economy is breaking down,” he said.
He called on the world to inject liquidity into the Afghan economy, while avoiding channeling cash through the Taliban.
-with agency inputs
