Kabul, 16 September 2022 (TDI): The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan (IEA) released a statement on the recent decision by the US to transfer a part ($3.5 billion) of the reserves of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) to Switzerland.
Statement by MoFA on DAB reserves
IEA-MoFA deems recent decision by the US to transfer a part ($3.5 billion) of the reserves of DAB to Switzerland & use it for targeted disbursement without any input by Afghanistan as unacceptable & a violation of international norms. pic.twitter.com/DnrI9Vzz1z
— Abdul Qahar Balkhi (@QaharBalkhi) September 15, 2022
The decision by the US
The United States officials said that the US will transfer the $3.5bn in Afghan central bank assets, seized after the Taliban took power last year in August, into a new Swiss-based trust fund to be used only for the benefit of the people of Afghanistan.
It was also said that the new Afghan Fund could cover essential imports like power, cover debt payments to foreign financial institutions, cover the printing of new currency, and will be protected from the Taliban by an international board of trustees.
The US officials also said that $3.5 billion will be safeguarded, preserved, and used by the Afghan Fund to make targeted payments that will contribute to the Afghan economy’s increased stability.
Additionally, US authorities stated that unless the Afghan central bank, commonly known as DAB, is free of political interference, no funding would be given to it.
Statement by Afghanistan
On the decision by the US, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan released a statement.
The Afghan spokesperson, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the IEA deems the recent decision by the US to transfer the reserves of DAB to Switzerland & use it for targeted disbursement without any input by Afghanistan as unacceptable & a violation of international norms.
He also said that IEA expresses its explicit opposition to the specific iteration of this mechanism. Moreover, he said that these reserves can never be used for any disbursement purposes.
He clarified that disbursing these reserves for other purposes without the agreement of the Afghan people is a negative step taken by the United States against the economic stability of Afghanistan.
Abdul Qahar Balkhi urged the US to unfreeze reserves and lift restrictions on the financial systems of the Afghan people so that they may have access to banking systems and stabilize their economy.
