Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan America took a big step. The Taliban may be preparing to form a government after occupy...
Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan
America took a big step. The Taliban may be preparing to form a government after occupying Afghanistan, but it will have to face problems on the fund front to run the country. Even though the terrorist group was able to quickly capture Kabul, it does not seem that it will be able to get around $10 billion in assets of the Afghan central bank so easily. According to the Washington Post report, the Biden administration on Monday froze the assets of the Afghan government kept in American banks. With this, the Taliban will not be able to get Afghanistan's treasury from American banks.
According to an Afghan official, the country's central bank The Afghanistan Bank (DAB) has foreign currency, gold, and other treasury. However, the exact information about this net worth is not clear. The news agency Reuters quoted another source familiar with the matter as saying that most of the assets are kept outside Afghanistan, which is difficult for the Taliban to access.
Reuters could not contact Afghan central bank officials in this regard. The bank's governor, Ajmal Ahmadi, also shared information on Twitter on Sunday about being relieved of the bank's charge and leaving the country after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and key officials left the country.
However, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the central bank of Afghanistan had reserves of $ 9.4 billion as of April (Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan). It accounts for about a third of the country's annual revenue. A large part of the property is not in Afghanistan. The Washington Post quoted a source familiar with the matter as saying that billions of dollars of the Afghan government are kept in the US.
Spokesmen for the White House and the Treasury Department declined to comment on the process of blocking Afghan assets or the continuation of US economic aid to Afghanistan. A spokesman for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York also declined to comment. It is believed that a large part of the assets of the Government of Afghanistan is with this bank.
According to The Washington Post, Adam Smith, who was a senior adviser to the National Security Council and the director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control during the Obama administration, told that America already has the right to freeze this asset. Because the Taliban is already banned after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
How much wealth does Afghan have: According to the most recent financial statement of the central bank The Afghanistan Bank (DAB), it has total assets of about $10 billion. This includes gold reserves of $1.3 billion and foreign currency cash reserves of $362 million. However, a large part of it is not in Afghanistan.(Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
In general, central banks in developing countries often keep their assets with institutions such as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY) or the Bank of England. According to the statement of the central bank of Afghanistan, it has an investment of $ 6.1 billion. The bulk of the investment has been made from the US.
An official in US President Joe Biden's administration told Reuters that Afghan central bank assets in the US would not be made available to the Taliban.
According to UNESCO, the vault of the Afghan central bank contains 2,000-year-old gold jewelry, ornaments and coins called the Bactrian Treasure. About 21,000 ancient artifacts were found in the basement of the central bank, while by 2003 they were believed to be lost. These artifacts were saved from the eyes of the Taliban. According to Tolo News, Afghan leaders had thought of keeping the treasure abroad for fear of theft and loot.(Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
After the capture of the Taliban, the Biden administration of America is expected to take many important decisions regarding financial aid to Afghanistan. Afghanistan is already one of the poorest countries in the world and heavily dependent on US aid which is now under threat. Experts say that the Biden administration may also face tough choices regarding the current sanctions on the Taliban. Due to this, it may be difficult to provide international humanitarian aid to the Afghan population in crisis. (Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
When asked about Tuesday's crackdown on the Taliban, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said there was obviously an issue of sanctions. But he declined to give further details. He also said that the US administration would first communicate directly with the Taliban. US President Biden also said on Monday that aid to Afghanistan would continue. (Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, told Reuters that nearly 80 percent of Afghanistan's budget comes from the US and other international donors. According to the Washington Post, on the question of imposing economic sanctions on Afghanistan, Ian Bremer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, said, "Of course, it is dangerous." The new crisis will increase refugees. The reason for this is fundamentalism (Taliban). But, on the other hand (the Afghan government) will not be able to control this country for very long. I can't see the money being spent on the Taliban.(Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
What will be the international help: A meeting is to be held on 23 August regarding the international aid to Afghanistan. The 190 member countries of the Special Drawing Rights will consider whether the pending $ 650 billion in aid will be released to Afghanistan after the Taliban take over. This international aid is provided to developing countries. Afghanistan deserves $455 billion in aid. A source familiar with the matter said that in such matters, the IMF takes action on the opinion of the members. IMF members have failed to reach a consensus on recognizing Myanmar's military leadership since the February coup.(Taliban will remain poor after capturing Afghanistan)
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