Latest News
US lawmakers concerned Taliban may grab military gear after withdrawal
US Brigadier General Matthew Trollinger, deputy director of politico-military affairs for the Joint Staff, told Senate lawmakers during a hearing on Afghanistan that US military equipment could end up in the hands of Taliban fighters and terrorist groups.
When pressed for a guarantee that enemy fighters in the region won’t steal some of the abandoned and gifted military equipment, Trollinger said “there aren’t any guarantees.”
But officials said they are using the time left until the pullout is completed to minimize that threat, while doing as much as they can to leave Afghan partners with tools to continue the fight.
“We will be transferring facilities, some vehicles and other equipment that the Afghan national defense forces can utilize in their ongoing efforts to secure the country,” said Trollinger.
“We will be retrograding equipment that we’re able to bring back to bases and stations in the continental United States as well as elsewhere, and then we’ll be disposing of equipment that essentially is either obsolete, inoperable or legally we’re not able to transfer to Afghanistan.”
This comes amid concerns from a number of Senate Armed Services Committee members who questioned the security state of Afghanistan once the US has withdrawn from Afghanistan.
Earlier this week, CENTCOM officials said the drawdown is between 13 percent and 20 percent complete.
David Helvey, acting assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific affairs, said military leaders are working closely to try and prevent logistics breakdowns with the Afghan security forces.
“We’re going to continue to maintain contact with our partners to determine what we can from outside the country, and maintain good situational awareness of their current capabilities,” he said.
“And we’re looking at any areas where they may be challenged and we may be able to help them.”
But he acknowledged that “corruption is a problem in Afghanistan” and that securing any functional equipment left behind will be a challenge.
Tajik authorities say their border guards clashed with militants who crossed into Tajikistan’s Khatlon region from Afghanistan on Tuesday night.
Tajikistan’s State Committee for National Security said in a statement that militants intended to carry out an armed attack on one of the border outposts.
Three militants were killed and two Tajik soldiers died in the clash. From the scene, three firearms—an M-16 rifle and a Kalashnikov assault rifle—three foreign-made pistols equipped with suppressors, ten hand grenades, one night-vision device, explosives, and other military equipment were seized, according to the committee.
This was the third reported attack from Afghanistan into Tajikistan in the past month, with the previous ones targeting Chinese nationals.
The Islamic Emirate previously said it assured Tajikistan it was ready to tighten border security and conduct joint investigations.
Business
Afghanistan’s first aluminum can factory launched in Herat with $120 million investment
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, laid the foundation stone of the “Pamir” aluminum can production company at the industrial parks of Herat on Thursday.
Afghanistan’s first aluminum can manufacturing plant was officially launched on Thursday in Herat province, marking a significant step toward industrial development and economic self-reliance.
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, laid the foundation stone of the “Pamir” aluminum can production company at the industrial parks of Herat on Thursday.
According to officials, the Pamir factory is the first of its kind in Afghanistan and is being established with an investment of $120 million. The project will be built on 16 jeribs of land within Herat’s industrial zones.
Once completed, the factory is expected to create employment opportunities for around 1,700 Afghan citizens. Officials say the project will play a key role in boosting domestic production, reducing reliance on imports, and strengthening the national economy.
Authorities described the launch of the project as a clear sign of growing investment in the industrial sector and ongoing efforts to promote economic self-sufficiency in the country.
Latest News
Medvedev: IEA posed less threat to Russia than western-backed groups
He added that such organisations have consistently pursued one objective: “to break apart the multiethnic people of Russia.”
Russia’s Deputy Chairman of the Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, has said that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) caused less harm to Russia than Western-backed civic organisations that, he claims, sought to undermine the country’s unity.
In an article published in the Russian journal Rodina, Medvedev wrote that while the IEA had long been designated as a terrorist organisation, its actions did not inflict the same level of damage on Russia as what he described as Western-supported institutions operating under the banner of academic or humanitarian work.
“Let us be honest: the Taliban (IEA) movement, long listed as a terrorist organisation, has caused modern Russia far less damage than all those pseudo-scientific institutions whose aim is to dismantle our country under the guise of aiding the oppressed,” Medvedev stated.
He added that such organisations have consistently pursued one objective: “to break apart the multiethnic people of Russia.”
Medvedev’s remarks come amid a shift in Russia’s official stance toward Afghanistan. In April, Russia’s Supreme Court suspended the ban on the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which had previously been included on the country’s list of terrorist organisations.
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