Category: Afghanistan

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Germany completes troop pull-out from Afghanistan

Germany maintained a contingent of around 1,100 troops before starting the drawdown in May….reports Asian Lite News

The last of the remaining German troops have left Afghanistan after nearly 20 years of deployment in the war-torn country, Defence Minister said Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.

The German Defence Minister said in a tweet that the last Bundeswehr soldiers “left Afghanistan safely” on Tuesday evening, reports TOLO News.

She thanked the more than 150,000 troops who have served there since 2001 and said that “they can be proud of this mission”.

Germany maintained a contingent of around 1,100 troops before starting the drawdown in May.

The country deployed its forces in the wake of the deadly 9/11 attacks in 2001, according to a DW News report.

The first troops arrived in Kabul in January 2002.

Over 150,000 German soldiers have been stationed in Afghanistan since, the report added.

Since US President Joe Biden announcement of the pullout of troops on May 1, the American military has completed more than half of the withdrawal.

Afghan security force members take part in a military operation in Chahar Dara district of Kunduz province, Afghanistan, Jan. 16, 2018. The Kunduz province, as well as neighboring Baghlan and Takhar provinces, have been the hotbeds of heavy clashes over the past couple of months as Taliban has been trying to attack the government forces in the once relatively peaceful region. (Xinhua/Ajmal Kakar/IANS)

Italy hands over Herat’s camp

As Italy has completed its troop exit from Afghanistan, the control of the Herat’s airport and the military camp was handed over to Afghan forces.

Herat was under the control of the Italian military for the last 20 years.

On July 1, Italian forces pulled out their military equipment as well as destroyed some of them, TOLO News reported citing Afghan military officials. They also destroyed a large number of armoured vehicles and heavy weapons while evacuating the camps.

Major General Sayed Emal Pacha, the commander of an Afghan air force division, said “In terms of military equipment, nothing was left for us from the Italians”.

Meanwhile, Herat Governor Abdul Saboor Qane said, “We pledge that our security and defence forces across Afghanistan are ready to defend our country and the people in the western zone and in Herat.”

Commenting on the situation, Abdul Shaheer Salehi, the director of Herat airport, informed that all aviation services are being carried out by the professional cadres of Khawja Abdullah Ansari airport. “There have been no problems at all at the airport following the withdrawal of foreign forces and flights are being carried out normally and regularly,” he said.

Meanwhile, Germany also completed the withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan.

Germany’s decision came nearly after 20 years of mission in the country. A contingent of around 570 soldiers was called back from Afghanistan.

Both Germany and Italy de-escalated their militaries from the region to mark their non-engagement in North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s ‘Resolute Support’ mission.

Their decision to pull out the troops came in April following the US plans to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan by September 11. (IANS/ANI)

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Tribal leaders hold rally in Kandahar in support of democracy

The rally witnessed the participation of a large number of people from the Kandahar, Zabul, and Urozgan provinces….reports Asian Lite News

Amid the rise in violence in Afghanistan, prominent tribal leaders of Alokozai Tribe organised a rally in Afghanistan’s Kandahar on June 28 in support of the democratic system and peace process.

The rally witnessed the participation of a large number of people from the Kandahar, Zabul, and Urozgan provinces.

Rahmatullah Yarmal, former Governor of Laghman criticised the Taliban insurgents for committing atrocities on the people of Afghanistan on the behest of Pakistan. He also criticised President Ghani for its weak policies and for adopting a soft stand towards Pakistan. He called on the public to rise against Taliban insurgents and stand behind the Afghan security forces to send a stern signal to Pakistan and defeat the Taliban on the battlefield.

Dawood Gulzar, Advisor to the Afghan President said that Pakistan is an obstacle to the peace process. ISI has always played the “role of the devil” in Afghanistan and been interfering in the affairs of Afghanistan. He asked the people of Kandahar to send a strong signal to Pakistan that now people of Kandahar would not tolerate the evil design of Pakistan and ISI.

Kalimullah Naqibi, who is also a member of the Afghan Delegation to Peace Talks in Doha noted the stalemate in the peace process and criticised the Taliban for intensifying the fighting and destroying lives and properties in Afghanistan.

A number of other speakers at the gathering criticized the Afghanistan Government for not giving residents of Loya Kandahar proper representations in the Afghan Security Forces and Peace Process, which has weakened the government and strengthened the Taliban. They demanded that youths of Loya Kandahar region should be recruited in the Afghan national security forces in large numbers in order to prevent them from turning to the Taliban.

Some speakers asked the government to expedite the peace process with the Taliban by inviting them to talk. The people of Afghanistan are suffering as the Taliban are taking control of areas and forcing people to flee causing a humanitarian crisis. (ANI)

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Top US General warns of civil war in Afghanistan

Afghan security force members take part in a military operation in Chahar Dara district of Kunduz province, Afghanistan, Jan. 16, 2018. The Kunduz province, as well as neighboring Baghlan and Takhar provinces, have been the hotbeds of heavy clashes over the past couple of months as Taliban has been trying to attack the government forces in the once relatively peaceful region. (Xinhua/Ajmal Kakar/IANS)

The commander of US forces in Afghanistan said the US will support the Afghan security forces as foreign forces leave the country….reports Asian Lite News

The top US military commander in Afghanistan has said that the country may collapse into civil war after the full US military drawdown.

Addressing a press conference in Kabul, General Austin S Miller on Tuesday said, “Civil war is certainly a path that can be visualized. That should be a concern for the world.”

The United States after 20 years in Afghanistan could not hope to impose a military solution as it has tried to do for almost two decades but had to seek a compromise political settlement, Miller said, as quoted by New York Times (NYT).

The commander of US forces in Afghanistan said the US will support the Afghan security forces as foreign forces leave the country.

Amid growing Taliban offensive and seizure of territory in the northern part of the country, Miller said that the Taliban’s expansion of violence makes it difficult to achieve peace.

According to NYT, US officials expect the entire withdrawal of their forces from the country will be completed in less than a week by the July 4 national holiday.

ALSO READ: Ghani govt denies TTP presence in Afghanistan

Pentagon on Tuesday said the end of the retrograde end will signify the end of the US combat mission in Afghanistan. The US mission will transition to protecting US diplomatic efforts in the nation and to establishing the bilateral relationship between the United States and Afghanistan, it added.

Taliban attack at the peak in Afghanistan 

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said that the only American forces that will be left in the country will be there to protect the U.S. diplomatic presence.

As the Taliban is continuing attacks against Afghan government forces, Kirby said, “The violence is too high and … the security situation, certainly, is concerning over there.”

“What’s important to say — and I’ll say it again — is that we want to see a peace process that’s credible and Afghan-led and leads to a negotiated settlement.” (ANI)

ALSO READ: TTP terrorists from Afghanistan posing threat: Pakistan

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TTP terrorists from Afghanistan posing threat: Pakistan

This statement comes in response to the Afghan foreign ministry’s remarks about TTP’s presence on Afghan territory…reports Asian Lite News

Amid the recent surge in violence in Afghanistan, Pakistan has said that some 5,000 terrorists belonging to the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were posing a threat to its security from their “sanctuaries” in the neighbouring country.

“The assertions of the Afghan side are contrary to facts on ground and various reports of the UN, which also corroborate the presence and activities of over 5000-strong TTP in Afghanistan,” the Pakistan Foreign Office was quoted by Dawn newspaper.

It further claimed that the TTP has over the past few years launched several gruesome terrorist attacks inside Pakistan using Afghan soil without any retribution from its hosts.

This statement comes in response to the Afghan foreign ministry’s remarks about TTP’s presence on Afghan territory. On Sunday, the Ashraf Ghani government denied the presence of the terrorist group in Afghanistan after Pakistan expressed apprehensions regarding a possible spillover of TTP.

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“According to the national security policy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, this movement along with other terrorist groups is recognized as the enemy of peace, stability, and prosperity in Afghanistan and the region, and the Afghan government fights against this terrorist outfit like any other terrorist group without discrimination,” the Afghan foreign ministry said.

The statement said that Afghanistan has consistently stressed upon implementation of UNSC resolutions and the Doha agreement which calls on the Taliban to cut ties with regional and international terrorist groups including the TTP.

“In order to establish lasting peace in Afghanistan and to ensure stability and prosperity in the region, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan calls on all countries, especially Pakistan, to treat all terrorist outfits equally and without discrimination, and not allow these closely linked and organized groups to collude with each other to jeopardize the security and stability of our countries,” the statement added.

Earlier this month, Pakistan Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid had said that Islamabad is expecting that the Taliban will not allow terrorist groups like TTP to carry out activities against Pakistan.

Pakistan has finished over 80 per cent of the Durand Line fencing along with Afghanistan despite facing backlash from the people on both sides of the line. Despite the absence of a concrete agreement with the Afghan government, the Pakistan government has been declaring the Durand Line as an official border. (ANI)

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Afghan civilians take up arms against Taliban

People in over ten Afghan districts have taken up arms against the Taliban in just a week following the back-to-back fall of dozens of districts to the group….reports Asian Lite News

As deadly clashes in Afghanistan continue to intensify, hundreds of more civilians have taken up arms against the Taliban in support of the government forces in Herat, Patkia, Ghor and Kunduz provinces.

According to TOLO News, the people who have taken up arms said they will not allow their villages to fall to the Taliban and said that the terrorist group would damage the country’s infrastructure. So far, hundreds of people have taken up arms against the Taliban in many provinces, including Takhar, Balkh, Badghis, Baghlan, Nangarhar and Laghman.

People in over ten Afghan districts have taken up arms against the Taliban in just a week following the back-to-back fall of dozens of districts to the group.

Meanwhile, sources informed that five districts have fallen to the Taliban since Saturday – including Sayed Abad and Chak-e-Wardak in Maidan Wardak, Rustaq in Takhar, Arghistan in Kandahar and Shortepa in Balkh. During this period, the government forces reported some progress but have not been able to recapture any district.

“Paktia residents pledge to the government and the security agencies that we are with you,” said Abdul Mallik Zazai, head of the provincial council in Paktia.

Meanwhile, some residents of Enjil district in Herat who have taken up arms warned the Taliban to quit violence or they will face resistance from the people. “We pledge to the people that we will defend the country until the last drop of our blood,” Farid Ahmad, a public uprising force member.

Some Afghan politicians said that arming the people is a serious need given the current situation and they welcome this move, but they expressed their concerns about its consequences if the forces are not managed well, TOLO News reported.

ALSO READ: US steps up support to Afghanistan

“Those who lead these forces should be responsible so that when the fighting is over they will not create any problems for Afghanistan,” said Asadullah Saadati, the deputy head of the High Council for National Reconciliation.

On the other hand, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense assured that the activities of the public forces will be well managed. “The mobilization of the people in support of the security and defense forces has had a considerable role in retaking territories, especially in the north, and has prevented the fall of some areas,” Defense Ministry spokesman Fawad Aman said.

Taliban

Meanwhile, the Taliban have warned those who have taken up arms against the group and said that they will not be forgiven, TOLO News reported.

As the deadline of the US drawdown from Afghanistan draws near, a senior member of the Taliban has stressed that the group has been continuing to urge the Washington States to honour a peace deal struck by the two sides in February 2020.

After the meeting between US President Joe Biden, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah, the White House on Friday announced a series of measures to provide assistance to the South Asian country amid troop withdrawal.

Biden had earlier announced that the US will start its final withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan on May 1 and complete its pullout ahead of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The withdrawal could be well ahead of the deadline. (ANI)

ALSO READ: Ghani govt denies TTP presence in Afghanistan

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Ghani govt denies TTP presence in Afghanistan

Ashraf Ghani

The statement said that Afghanistan has consistently stressed upon implementation of UNSC resolutions and the Doha agreement…reports Asian Lite News

The Ashraf Ghani government denied the presence of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan on Sunday after Pakistan expressed apprehensions regarding a possible spillover of TTP amid the US drawdown from its neighbouring country.

“According to the national security policy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, this movement along with other terrorist groups is recognized as the enemy of peace, stability, and prosperity in Afghanistan and the region, and the Afghan government fights against this terrorist outfit like any other terrorist group without discrimination,” the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement.

The statement said that Afghanistan has consistently stressed upon implementation of UNSC resolutions and the Doha agreement which calls on the Taliban to cut ties with regional and international terrorist groups including the TTP.

“In order to establish lasting peace in Afghanistan and to ensure stability and prosperity in the region, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan calls on all countries, especially Pakistan, to treat all terrorist outfits equally and without discrimination, and not allow these closely linked and organized groups to collude with each other to jeopardize the security and stability of our countries,” the statement added.

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This comes as Pakistan Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid last week had said that Islamabad is expecting that the Taliban will not allow terrorist groups like TTP to carry out activities against Pakistan.

While speaking to the media in Islamabad on Saturday, Rashid reiterated Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statement that Pakistan will not give any bases to the United States to use against Afghanistan, The Express Tribune reported.

He further added,”…But we also expect from the Taliban that they will not allow TTP and other elements to carry out any activity which causes harm to the lives and property of Pakistani people.”

Since the start of the US drawdown from Afghanistan in May, the Taliban has overrun numerous districts across Afghanistan. The fall of strategic districts in the north, south and west has created concerns over the possible infiltration of Taliban into the income-generating territory in the country, TOLOnews reported.

In the face of the surging violence in Afghanistan, Pakistan has ramped up Durand Line fencing despite facing backlash from the people on both sides of the line.

The Pakistani interior ministry made the announcement earlier this month saying that the fencing of the 2,600-kilometer border would be completed by June end. (ANI)

ALSO READ: US steps up support to Afghanistan

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Taliban asks US to honour Afghan peace deal

U.S.-Special-Representative-Zalmay-Khalilzad-during-the-talks-in-Doha

Suhail Shaheen told NHK in an interview that the Taliban have been continuing negotiations with US officials behind the scenes….reports Asian Lite News

As the deadline of the US drawdown from Afghanistan draws near, a senior member of the Taliban has stressed that the group has been continuing to urge the Washington States to honour a peace deal struck by the two sides in February 2020.

Suhail Shaheen told NHK in an interview that the Taliban have been continuing negotiations with US officials behind the scenes.

Shaheen, who is the spokesperson for the Taliban’s political office, said the peace deal called for the US to work toward the release of all remaining Taliban prisoners, and the removal of UN sanctions on senior Taliban members.

As clashes continue and intensify, hundreds more have taken up arms against the Taliban in support of the government forces, in several provinces throughout the country, TOLOnews reported.

Those who took up arms in Herat, Patkia, Ghor and Kunduz, said they will not allow their villages to fall to the Taliban who they claim would damage the country’s infrastructure.

Taliban attack at the peak in Afghanistan 

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The Afghan presidential spokesperson Latif Mahmoud said recent moves in the last few weeks are in favour of the Afghan Republic. “The people of Afghanistan, by supporting the security and defense forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, joined the united umbrella of the Republic,” Mahmoud said.

The Afghan Defense Ministry assured that the mobilization of the people in support of the security and defense forces has had a considerable role in retaking territories, especially in the north, and has prevented the fall of some areas.

Meanwhile, the Taliban warned those who have taken up arms and said that they will not be forgiven.

After the meeting between US President Joe Biden, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah, the White House on Friday announced a series of measures to provide assistance to the South Asian country amid troop withdrawal.

Biden had earlier announced that the US will start its final withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan on May 1 and complete its pullout ahead of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The withdrawal could be well ahead of the deadline. (ANI)

ALSO READ: US steps up support to Afghanistan

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Pak proxy Taliban target India

Afghan leaders, along with US military commanders, have attributed much of the insurgency’s power and longevity either directly or indirectly to Pakistani support, reports Asian Lite News

Pakistan’s security establishment, fearful of strategic encirclement by India, apparently continues to view the Afghan Taliban as a relatively friendly and reliably anti-India element in Afghanistan, as per a brief prepared by the US Congressional Research Service.

The document on US policy in Afghanistan says Pakistan’s security services maintain ties to Afghan insurgent groups, most notably the Haqqani Network.

Afghan leaders, along with US military commanders, have attributed much of the insurgency’s power and longevity either directly or indirectly to Pakistani support.

Despite official Pakistani leadership’s statements to the contrary, Islamabad may view a weak and destabilized Afghanistan as preferable to a strong, unified Afghan state (particularly one led by an ethnic Pashtun-dominated government in Kabul; Pakistan has a large and restive Pashtun minority), the brief said.

India slams Pakistan for its human rights situation 

Afghanistan-Pakistan relations are further complicated by the presence of over one million Afghan refugees in Pakistan, as well as a long-running and ethnically tinged dispute over their shared 1,600-mile border.

“Pakistan’s security establishment, fearful of strategic encirclement by India, apparently continues to view the Afghan Taliban as a relatively friendly and reliably anti-India element in Afghanistan. India’s diplomatic and commercial presence in Afghanistan—and US rhetorical support for it—exacerbates Pakistani fears of encirclement. India has been the largest regional contributor to Afghan reconstruction, but New Delhi has not shown an inclination to pursue a deeper defense relationship with Kabul,” the brief said.

Afghanistan maintains mostly cordial ties with its other neighbours, notably the post-Soviet states of Central Asia, whose role in Afghanistan has been relatively limited but could increase.

Islamic State

In the past two years, multiple US commanders have warned of increased levels of support for the Taliban from Russia and Iran, both of which have cited the Islamic State affiliate presence in Afghanistan to justify their activities. Both were reported in 2020 to have been more directly involved, including possibly supporting Taliban attacks against US forces.

Both nations were opposed to the Taliban government of the late 1990s, but reportedly see the Taliban as a useful point of leverage vis-à-vis the United States. Afghanistan may also represent a growing priority for China in the context of broader Chinese aspirations in Asia and globally, it added.

“Afghan officials have sought to downplay the impact of the US military withdrawal on their own forces’ capabilities, but some official US assessments indicate that the withdrawal could lead to Taliban gains on the battlefield. By many measures, the Taliban are in a stronger position now than at any point since 2001, controlling as much as half of the country, though many once-public US government metrics related to the conflict have been classified or are no longer produced”, the brief said.

Future changes in political arrangements and/or in the security environment may in turn influence US policymakers’ consideration of future levels and conditions of development assistance. It is unclear to what extent, if at all, the prospect of continued US assistance to Afghanistan (which remains one of the world’s poorest countries) represents leverage over the Taliban, it added.

Taliban

The Wall Street Journal reported that the US intelligence community concluded last week that the government of Afghanistan could collapse as soon as six months after the American military withdrawal from the country is completed.

American intelligence agencies revised their previously more optimistic estimates as the Taliban swept through northern Afghanistan last week, seizing dozens of districts and surrounding major cities. Afghan security forces frequently surrendered without a fight, leaving their Humvees and other American-supplied equipment to the insurgents, the report said.

The new assessment of the overall US intelligence community, which hasn’t been previously reported, has now aligned more closely with the analysis that had been generated by the US military. The military has already withdrawn more than half of its 3,500 troops and its equipment, with the rest due to be out by Sept. 11.

On Wednesday, Taliban fighters were battling government troops inside the northern city of Kunduz after occupying the main border crossing with Tajikistan the previous day and reaching the outskirts of northern Afghanistan’s main hub, Mazar-e-Sharif. Tajikistan’s border service said 134 Afghan troops at the crossing were granted refuge while some 100 others were killed or captured by the Taliban.

Overall, the Taliban’s lightning offensive in northern Afghanistan resulted in the fall of dozens of districts over the past week, putting much of the countryside under insurgent control. Local politicians and tribal elders negotiated a series of surrender agreements with government forces. Often unpaid for months, these troops left convoys of armored vehicles and stockpiles of weaponry, including artillery pieces, mortars and heavy machine guns, in exchange for Taliban guarantees of safe passage, the report said.

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Questions over move to evacuate Afghans who assisted military

Questions over move to evacuate Afghans who assisted military

The White House confirmed that it would evacuate former interpreters, drivers and others along with their families to third countries to shield them from danger in Afghanistan…reports Asian Lite News

As President Joe Biden moves ahead with his plan to withdraw Afghans from Kabul who have assisted US military efforts in the country, lawmakers and advocates have raised several questions as the deadline for the plan draws near.

The White House confirmed that it would evacuate former interpreters, drivers and others along with their families to third countries to shield them from danger in Afghanistan, senior administration officials confirmed to The Hill.

It comes after mounting pressure on the Biden administration from lawmakers to evacuate Afghans who are waiting for Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applications to be processed.

However, even those who have pushed the administration to execute that massive-scale evacuation say officials have been short on details about when, where and how it will take place.

“There are many outstanding questions, including which applicants would be prioritized for evacuation, how we would get them out of the country, where we would send them, how much it would cost and where the money to come from, just to name a few. And that doesn’t even mention the clock that is ticking on our time on the ground,” House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Michael McCaul said in a statement to The Hill.

“I appreciate the Biden Administration’s intention to evacuate as many SIV applicants as possible – which I have been calling them to do for months – but that doesn’t mean much until they put words to action. They need to start answering some of these basic questions if we are to believe they will actually follow through,” he added.

Meanwhile, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday that a group of SIV applicants will be relocated before the withdrawal is officially completed in September.

Since the Biden administration announced plans to withdraw from Afghanistan by September 11, it has faced calls to speed processing of the 18,000 Afghans who have already applied for SIVs along with another 53,000 family members seeking to accompany them to the US.

However, the withdrawal could take place well before the September deadline, as the military looks likely to largely wrap up its withdrawal in July amid mounting pressure. This also comes as US intelligence reports suggested that Afghanistan could fall to the Taliban in as little as six months once America leaves.

Experts are also worried the lack of military presence could hinder the evacuation, particularly if the withdrawal takes away the option of moving Afghans on military planes, The Hill reported.

The 14-point visa application process can take as long as 800 days to process.

Sunil Varghese, policy director of the International Refugee Assistance Project, said SIV seekers are often held up as the government works to verify employment — an effort complicated by factors including poor record-keeping throughout the war and even kidnapping of people’s former supervisors.

“There’s a big question as to what happens to someone who is evacuated and then stuck in this years-long process, and what happens if they’re denied in error or forced to reapply,” Varghese said.

Lawmakers have for months been calling on the State Department to speed visa processing, introducing bills to cut some red tape and add anywhere from 4,000 to 20,000 visas to the program.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah recently met Biden at the White House, following which the US has detailed additional efforts to assist the conflict-torn country.

In a fact-sheet, the White House said: “Our strong support and partnership is designed to prevent Afghanistan from ever again being used as a safe haven for terrorism, maintain Afghan stability and build self-reliance, promote economic growth, preserve social gains in education, health and women’s empowerment and the rule of law, protect the rights of women, girls, and minorities, bolster Afghan civil society, and respond to humanitarian needs.”

Meanwhile, Ghani warned that the US withdrawal could have consequences for both sides, although he did not ask Biden to delay the plan. (ANI)

ALSO READ: US steps up support to Afghanistan

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US steps up support to Afghanistan

As part of its strategy to distribute COVID-19 vaccines around the world, the US has pledged to donate three million doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine to the people of Afghanistan through the COVAX facility, reports Asian Lite News

After the meeting between US President Joe Biden, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah, the White House on Friday announced a series of measures to provide assistance to the South Asian country amid troop withdrawal.

In a fact-sheet, the White House said: “Our strong support and partnership is designed to prevent Afghanistan from ever again being used as a safe haven for terrorism, maintain Afghan stability and build self-reliance, promote economic growth, preserve social gains in education, health and women’s empowerment and the rule of law, protect the rights of women, girls, and minorities, bolster Afghan civil society, and respond to humanitarian needs.”

As part of its strategy to distribute COVID-19 vaccines around the world, the US has pledged to donate three million doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine to the people of Afghanistan through the COVAX facility. COVAX is working to ship these doses to Afghanistan.

Additionally, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is also supporting Afghan efforts to respond to the critical shortfalls in oxygen and medical ventilation support by providing emergency and structural assistance. To strengthen this effort, the USAID has ordered over 300 oxygen cylinders and several months’ worth of ventilator consumables to be shipped to Afghanistan as quickly as possible.

The USAID also plans to install oxygen plants in four hospitals that will serve smaller facilities in the surrounding areas. USAID recently committed USD 38 million in emergency COVID-19 supplemental funding to the UN World Food Program (WFP) to address the food and nutrition needs of approximately 1.2 million COVID-impacted vulnerable people in Afghanistan.

With this funding, WFP will reach more than 164,000 children and nearly 28,000 pregnant and lactating women with essential moderate acute malnutrition treatment.

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The US recently announced more than USD 266 million in new humanitarian assistance to address the pressing needs of an estimated 18 million people in Afghanistan, including more than 4.8 million internally displaced Afghans. This funding will allow our partners to provide lifesaving protection, shelter, livelihood opportunities, essential health care, emergency food aid, water, sanitation, and hygiene services to respond to the needs generated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, read the fact-sheet.

The US Department of Defense’s Afghanistan Security Forces Fund (ASFF) will provide financial support to the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police, Afghan Air Force and the Afghan Special Security Forces, including the Special Mission Wing. Congress appropriated over USD 3 billion to ASFF in 2021 and Biden has requested over USD 3.3 billion for 2022.

“As part of our commitment to invest in and support the Afghan people, the United States has recently announced an additional USD 300 million in civilian assistance for Afghanistan in 2021 through both the Department of State and USAID. The President has also requested an additional USD 364 million in development assistance for the State Department and USAID for 2022,” said the White House.

The Biden administration has also pledged to mobilise diplomatic support for peace and stability in Afghanistan. It urged all Afghan parties to engage urgently and meaningfully in peace talks aimed at achieving a just and durable settlement that includes protections for the rights of all Afghans, including women and minorities.

The US will encourage our partners to continue their security and development assistance, including through the Afghan National Army Trust Fund (ANATF), Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan (LOTFA), and the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). It will also work closely with other major donors to ensure continued development and humanitarian assistance to help the Afghan people.

The visit comes amid the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and Ghani and Abdullah are likely to discuss how the United States and Afghanistan will continue to work together in the future.

Biden had earlier announced that the US will start its final withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan on May 1 and complete its pullout ahead of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The withdrawal could be well ahead of the deadline. (ANI)

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