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Muttaqi calls for cooperation in letter to US Congress
Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi warned Wednesday that continued “sanctions” will not help the current situation and could instead lead to a major crisis including a mass migration.
In a letter addressed to the United States Congress, Muttaqi said after suffering decades of war, the Afghan people now “have a right to financial security.”
“Currently the fundamental challenge of our people is financial security and the roots of this concern lead back to the freezing of assets of our people by the American government,” he said.
He also said that following the signing of the Doha Agreement in February last year, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) “no longer find ourselves in direct conflict with one another nor are we a military opposition, what logic could possibly exist behind the freezing of our assets?”
“We believe that both sides have a great opportunity to build positive relations, moving forward and learn lessons from past bitter experiences. At a time when we have an excellent opportunity for positive relations, reaching for the option of sanctions and pressure cannot help improve our relations.”
He said the country now has a “united, responsible and non-corrupt government,” and that “practical steps have been taken towards good governance, security and transparency, islands of power have been eliminated, agents of corruption, embezzlement, usurpation and infringement of other rights have been neutralised, security has taken hold throughout the country, no threat is posed to the region or world from Afghanistan and a pathway has been paved for positive cooperation.”
“Afghanistan now has everything available for growth and development, and the United States of America can also invest in the manufacturing, agriculture and mining sectors of Afghanistan,” he said.
However, he said the IEA understands “the concerns of the international community and America, and it is necessary for both sides to take positive steps in order to build trust.”
Muttaqi also stated that freezing of assets and economic sanctions can harm health, education and other civil service systems and that this “will only harm the common Afghans and this will serve as the worst memory ingrained in Afghans at the hands of America.”
On the humanitarian crisis, Muttaqi stated that the country has already been hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic, drought, war and poverty and that the imposition of “sanctions” has hampered trade and impacted the process of providing humanitarian assistance.
“Assessments by the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations conclude that if these conditions continue, the Afghans will face a dire situation this winter,” he said.
He also pointed out that there was not “logical” justification for allowing women and children to suffer due to the lack of health services, food, shelter and other primary needs.
In calling for Afghanistan’s assets held by the United States to be released, he said he hopes Congress will take the matter seriously and consider the people.
“In conclusion, I request the government of the United States of America take responsible steps towards addressing the humanitarian and economic crisis unfolding in Afghanistan so that doors for future relations are opened, assets of Afghanistan’s Central Bank are unfrozen and sanctions on our banks are lifted.”
Russia’s foreign spy service chief, Sergei Naryshkin, has claimed that Western intelligence agencies are looking for ways to help anti-government forces in Afghanistan in hopes of keeping the country in a state of disarray.
Naryshkin visited Baku on April 17-18 to participate in the conference “Afghanistan: Regional Interconnectivity, Security and Development.”
According to him, the West is trying to maintain instability in Afghanistan in order to advance its own geopolitical interests. “It is the Westerners who continue to block Afghan assets and maintain sanctions against Kabul, while Western intelligence agencies are looking for ways to support anti-government forces in this country,” the statement said, TASS news agency reported.
He emphasized that Afghanistan “occupies an important place in geopolitics, and it is in the common interest of our states to promote reconstruction and prosperity on the Afghan land.”
The Russian foreign spy chief “noted the positive dynamics of Russian-Afghan relations and reported that Russia has started the process of removing the Taliban movement (IEA) from the list of terrorist organizations.” Naryshkin “positively assessed the activities of the current Afghan authorities in the sphere of state-building and expressed confidence in the inevitability of the prospect of their international recognition.”
“The primary obstacle to this scenario, in his opinion, is the West’s desire to maintain instability in Afghanistan to further its own geopolitical interests,” he said.
Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, arrived in Kabul on Saturday for talks with officials of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA).
He was welcomed at the airport by Deputy Foreign Minister for Financial and Administrative Affairs Mohammad Naeem and other officials.
During the day-long visit, Dar will call on Prime Minister Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund, meet Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, and hold delegation-level talks with Acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday.
“The talks will cover entire gamut of Pak-Afghan relationship, focusing on ways and means to deepen cooperation in all areas of mutual interests, including security, trade, connectivity, and people-to-people ties,” the statement said.
“Dar’s visit is a reflection of Pakistan’s commitment to enhance sustained engagement with the brotherly country of Afghanistan,” the statement added.
Pakistan has expelled over 80,000 Afghan nationals since the end of March, a senior official said on Friday, as part of a repatriation drive ahead of the April 30 deadline.
Afghan nationals who have no legal documents to stay or those holding Afghan Citizen Cards had been warned by Islamabad to return home or face deportation by March 31, a deadline which was then extended to April 30.
The April 30 deadline is final, Talal Chaudhry, an interior ministry adviser told a press conference in Islamabad, underlining that only those Afghans who hold valid visas to be in Pakistan would be allowed to stay, Reuters reported.
The repatriation drive is part of a campaign called the Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan launched in late 2023.
Pakistan has in the past blamed militant attacks and crimes on Afghan citizens, who form the largest migrant group in the country. Afghanistan has rejected the accusations, and has termed the repatriation as forced deportation.
Chaudhry was speaking just a day before Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is scheduled to lead a high-powered delegation for talks in Kabul.
“The talks will cover the entire gamut of the Pakistan-Afghan relationship, focusing on ways and means to deepen cooperation in all areas of mutual interests, including security, trade, connectivity, and people-to-people ties,” a foreign office statement said.
Pakistani authorities say they have set up temporary centres in various cities to house the Afghan nationals before transporting them to the Torkham border crossing in northwest Pakistan.
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