Afghan situation can be averted if US releases Kabul's assets: Imran Khan

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the detoriating situation in Afghanistan can be averted if the US releases Kabul's assets and liquidity is put into their banking system.

Over nine billion US dollars in Afghan assets is lying frozen in foreign banks, mainly in the US, following the collapse of the Afghan former government.

"A man-made crisis is being created despite knowing that it can be averted if (Afghanistan's) accounts (in the US) are unfrozen and liquidity is put into their banking system," the Prime Minister said, Dawn newspaper reported.

The Prime Minister made these remarks at a ceremony held at the Foreign Office to celebrate the successful holding of the extraordinary session of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers on Tuesday.

Afghanistan is facing severe economic and financial problems, and the hold on its assets--and sanctions on the Islamic Emirate--have contributed to the problems, Tolo News reported.

US lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to unfreeze Afghanistan's central bank reserves in the amount of 9.4 billion dollars.

In a letter to US President Joe Biden and Treasury Department, Democratic US House members said that they stand with American allies and humanitarian experts in urging the United States to avoid harsh economic measures that will directly harm Afghan families and children, Sputnik reported.

"(We) stand with American allies and humanitarian experts in urging the United States to avoid harsh economic measures that will directly harm Afghan families and children," the lawmakers had said in the letter. "This means conscientiously but urgently modifying current US policy regarding the freeze of Afghanistan's foreign reserves and ongoing sanctions."

Later, US States Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday (local time) said that Washington is looking intensely at ways to put more liquidity into the Afghan economy so as to provide money to the people of the cash-strapped nation.

"We are looking intensely at ways to put more liquidity into the Afghan economy to get more money into people's pockets. And doing that, with international institutions, with other countries and partners, trying to put in place the right mechanisms to do that in a way that doesn't directly benefit the Taliban but does go directly to the people," Blinken said during a press briefing.

He further stated that Afghanistan is facing a difficult humanitarian situation.

"We're very conscious of the fact that there is an incredibly difficult humanitarian situation right now, all it could get worse as winter sets in, and so that's an area of intense focus for us, working closely with allies and partners," Blinken said.

The Taliban took over control of Kabul on August 15 and following this the country has been battered by deepening economic, humanitarian and security crises.

( With inputs from ANI )

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