Five Years On: IEA touts economic growth despite international isolation

Five years after returning to power, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) is highlighting what it describes as progress in security, economic activity and infrastructure development, while Afghanistan continues to face economic challenges, limited diplomatic recognition and international concerns over restrictions on women and girls.

In an interview with CBS, IEA Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abdul Gahar Balkhi said the end of the foreign military presence was the administration’s main achievement, pointing to calmer streets, fewer security checkpoints and ongoing infrastructure projects in Kabul.

He said that conditions had improved across the economy, trade, transit and international relations.

He claimed Afghanistan’s exports had increased from about $750 million in 2020 to nearly $2 billion, while the number of operating factories had risen from around 1,500 to approximately 6,000.

Afghanistan, however, continues to face severe economic and humanitarian challenges, including widespread hunger and unemployment.

Diplomatic recognition of the IEA administration also remains limited.

Balkhi told CBS that formal recognition was less important than practical diplomatic engagement, pointing to the presence of foreign ambassadors, diplomatic exchanges and trade relations with other countries.

Restrictions on women’s education remain a major source of international criticism. Public schooling for girls from grade seven onward remains suspended.

Balkhi rejected claims that the IEA had issued more than 100 decrees targeting women. He said the restrictions on secondary education were a suspension rather than a permanent ban, and pointed to homeschooling, religious schools and online education as alternatives.

“There is no such thing as secret schools. There’s homeschooling options,” he said.

“There’s madrasa options. There’s online options,” he said, adding that “you would call it a secret school, but we call it homeschooling.”

On counterterrorism commitments under the Doha Agreement, Balkhi told CBS that Afghan territory would not be allowed to serve as a base for attacks against the United States or other countries.

Asked about the 2022 U.S. drone strike in Kabul that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, Balkhi said Afghan officials could not confirm the identity of the person killed, while maintaining that the IEA was committed to its security pledges.

Balkhi also said the IEA wanted formal diplomatic relations with all countries, including the United States, and would welcome the reopening of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.

Relations with Washington remain complicated by disagreements over frozen Afghan central bank assets and U.S. demands concerning military equipment left behind during the 2021 withdrawal.

“That is the assets of the state of Afghanistan. It’s not the money of the current government or the previous government or the governments before it,” Balkhi said in relation to the frozen assets.

“That money, freezing that money, is not to the benefit of the people of Afghanistan and it certainly isn’t to the benefit of the United States,” he added.

Balkhi also rejected any proposal to exchange military equipment for Afghanistan’s frozen financial reserves, arguing that both were assets belonging to the Afghan state.

“We have no intention of dealing on the assets of the state of Afghanistan,” he said.

He did however call for greater diplomatic engagement with Afghanistan, saying it could contribute to economic recovery and regional stability.

“We want formal diplomatic ties with every single country of the world, including the United States of America.

“In the world that we live in, in a globalized world, the prosperity and development of countries depends on interactions with each other, for the greater benefit of humanity,” he said.

He went on to say that it’s the IEA’s policy to “welcome all countries, including the United States of America, if they wish to invest in the mineral sector, in the gas sector, whatever sector that they feel is mutually beneficial.”

In conclusion, Balkhi stated: “We no longer have war and we can work towards the development of the country and stabilize it for our future generations.”