US Asked to Link Afghanistan Aid to Recognition of Durand Line

The United States needs to condition its aid to Afghanistan on the recognition of the Durand Line, a U.S. lawmaker told a House Subcommittee on Foreign Affairs.

The U.S. lawmaker, California Democrat Brad Sherman said that the Afghan government needs to recognize the 2,430km line between Pakistan and Afghanistan in order to achieve desired negotiations from Pakistan.

“The Durand line between Afghanistan and Pakistan has not been recognised by the Afghan government and we ought to condition our aid to Afghanistan on the recognition of that line. The fact is that as long as Afghanistan leaves open the idea that they are claiming Pakistani territory it’s going to be very hard to get the Pakistanis involved as we need them involved in controlling the Taliban,” Sherman said.

Sherman proposed conditioning US aid to Kabul while outlining his views on Pakistan’s interests in Afghanistan and its fears of a growing Indian influence in that country. “The Durand line — the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan — has not been recognized by the Afghan government,” he said.

“I realize that’s tough. They’ll say, oh, don’t — but the fact is, as long as Afghanistan leaves open the idea that they’re claiming Pakistani territory, it’s going to be very hard to get the Pakistanis involved, as we need them involved, in controlling the Afghan Taliban,” he explained.

The Durand Line, established in 1896, is the internationally recognized border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. But it remains largely unrecognized in Afghanistan with India often supporting Afghanistan.