Angela Merkel urges for international community's 'continued Afghanistan support'

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday, October 11 supported the European commission’s decision to allocate €1 billion funding for humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, which was recently announced during the G20 meeting of the EU leaders convened by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Urging the international community to help prevent a looming economic collapse in Afghanistan, the German leader said at a televised press conference, “To watch 40 million people fall into chaos because neither electricity can be supplied nor a financial system exists, this cannot and must not be the goal of the international community.” 

Merkel’s remark in Berlin was directed at the unforeseen energy crisis in Afghanistan as the central Asian country’s former CEO of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), Daud Noorzai, warned that Kabul could face a total blackout and ultimately a complete humanitarian catastrophe in the days ahead. The newly installed Taliban government has failed to pay electricity dues to its energy suppliers from the neighbourhood countries. Outlining the devastating situation of Afghanistan, Merkel stated that "None of us benefit if the entire currency system collapses or the financial system collapses in Afghanistan because then humanitarian aid can no longer be provided.” The German leader called for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank to make efforts to prevent a collapse of the financial system in Afghanistan amidst the joint annual meeting of the two global monetary organisations in Washington DC, United States. 

93% of the households in Kabul face starvation

United Nations figures estimate that approximately 18 million Afghans, nearly half of the total population rely on international humanitarian assistance as about 93% of the households face hunger and starvation. Chancellor Merkel stressed that the diplomatic recognition of the Taliban was "not on the agenda,” as she additionally emphasised for European efforts to step up diplomatic talks with the Taliban. This comes as the EU warns that the socio-economic situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating, putting hundreds of thousands of Afghans at risk as winter approaches. "Humanitarian assistance alone will not be enough to avert famine and a major humanitarian crisis," the EU stated in a release after the G7 meeting. President Ursula von der Leyen said: “We must do all we can to avert a major humanitarian and socio-economic collapse in Afghanistan. We need to do it fast." 

Image: AP