Taliban welcomes US' decision to issue 3 general licenses to facilitate aid for Afghans

The Taliban interim government on Friday welcomed the US' milestone decision of issuing three General Licenses that will facilitate the flow of life-saving and basic humanitarian aid to vulnerable people in Afghanistan. Speaking at a regular press briefing on Friday, Taliban deputy spokesperson Bilal Karimi noted that "Afghan people passed through long wars and drought is yet another problem ahead of Afghanistan so we appreciate such decision." Talking about the current economic condition of the war-torn country, Karimi also added:

"Afghanistan has witnessed a 20-year war, so it needs more international support," TOLO News reported.

The issuance of three General Licenses by the US will prevent a "humanitarian catastrophe" in Afghanistan and show that the US is worried about the condition of the Afghan people. "Besides this, the decision also shows their engagement with Afghanistan," Shaker Yaqoobi, a university professor told TOLO. The assertions come as White House on December 22 announced the decision of the US Treasury Department of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to permit General Licence 17, 18 and 19 as a move to "underscore US' commitment to supporting the people of Afghanistan," White House said in a statement.

The US is the 'largest single provider' of humanitarian aid in Afghanistan

Underlining that the licenses highlight and consolidate the US' long-standing practice of authorising provisions to the war-torn nation, Deputy Secretary of Treasury Department, Wally Adeyemo in her statement noted that "The United States is the largest single provider of humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan. We are committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan." The US Treasury provided a broad range of guidance to ensure NGOs, international organisations and the US government continue to provide relief to those in need.

As per White House Press release, General License 17 will ensure all transactions and activities involving Taliban or Haqqani network are for the conduct of official business of the US government by employees, grantees, or contractors thereof subject to certain conditions. General License 18 authorises all transactions involving the Taliban or Haqqani network that are for the conduct of the official business of certain international organisations, entities by employees, grantees, or contractors and are subject to certain conditions. Lastly, the General License 19 "authorizes all transactions and activities involving the Taliban or the Haqqani Network, that are ordinarily incident and necessary to the following activities by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), subject to certain conditions: humanitarian projects to meet basic human needs; activities to support rule of law, citizen participation, government accountability and transparency, human rights and fundamental freedoms, access to information, and civil society development projects; education; non-commercial development projects directly benefitting the Afghan people; and environmental and natural resource protection," White House statement added.

It is to be noted, the issuance of General Licences was followed by its adoption by United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Resolution 2615 (2021)  allows exemption to sanctions provisions established in Resolution 1988 (2011). On Wednesday, 15 members of the UNSC unanimously adopted Resolution 2615 (2021) under Chapter VII of the Charter of the UN.

Image: AP