Taliban spokesman accuses Pakistan of seeking to destabilise Afghanistan

January 2, 2026

by 

AMU TV

January 2, 2026

Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has accused Pakistan of seeking to destabilise Afghanistan in coordination with major powers, including the United States, as relations between the two sides remain strained despite multiple rounds of talks.

Mujahid said some elements within Pakistan’s military were acting at the behest of Washington to undermine security in Afghanistan and the wider region.

“Certain military circles in Pakistan, in cooperation with and at the request of major powers, are trying to destabilise Afghanistan,” Mujahid told an interview streamed on YouTube.

He linked the allegation to renewed US statements about Afghanistan’s former Bagram air base, adding: “When the United States raises the issue of Bagram, the question of Pakistan’s role in destabilising Afghanistan also arises. This can be pursued in a coordinated manner between the US and some military circles in Pakistan.”

Mujahid said the Taliban administration was not dependent on any foreign power and warned Islamabad against seeking influence over Kabul. “The Islamic Emirate is not reliant on any country, and Pakistan should not harbour dreams of dominance over Afghanistan,” he said. He again denied the presence of militant groups operating from Afghanistan’s territory.

Pakistan has repeatedly rejected such accusations and says militant groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), operate from Afghanistan’s territory.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesman Tahir Andarabi said in recent remarks that Afghanistan’s territory was being “widely used” by militant groups to carry out attacks inside Pakistan, and called on the Taliban to provide formal guarantees.

“Our demand from Afghanistan is clear: do not allow terrorists to operate against Pakistan from your soil,” Andarabi said. “These militants are not Pakistani citizens; more than 70% of them are Afghan nationals. We now expect a written commitment to ensure Afghan soil is not used against us.”

The Taliban have consistently denied supporting the TTP, saying security incidents in Pakistan are an internal matter for Islamabad.

Tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan have intensified over the past three months, with border closures, rising rhetoric and Pakistani air strikes on Afghanistan’s border provinces. Pakistani forces also carried out strikes that, for the first time, reached areas in Kabul and Kandahar.

At least four rounds of talks between Taliban and Pakistani delegations, held in Doha, Istanbul and Riyadh, have failed to produce a breakthrough, leaving relations between the two sides at one of their lowest points since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021.

Taliban spokesman accuses Pakistan of seeking to destabilise Afghanistan
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Pakistan deports more than 2,000 migrants in a day

January 2, 2026

by 

January 2, 2026

Returning migrants from Pakistan. Archive photo.

Pakistan deported more than 2,000 Afghan migrants on Thursday, Jan. 1, the Taliban’s commission for refugee said, as Islamabad presses ahead with a campaign to expel immigrants without valid documents.

The commission said the returnees crossed into Afghanistan via the Torkham, Spin Boldak and Bahramcha border crossings. In the same period, 284 individuals returned from Iran through the Islam Qala and Silk Bridge crossings, it added.

The latest returns come amid a sharp rise in deportations from neighbouring countries. The United Nations says more than 2.6 million Afghans were returned to Afghanistan in 2025, mostly from Pakistan and Iran, warning that the influx is putting severe strain on the country’s limited resources.

International aid agencies have repeatedly cautioned that many returnees arrive with few possessions and little access to shelter or jobs, raising the risk of deepening poverty, renewed displacement and a worsening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.

Pakistan deports more than 2,000 migrants in a day
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Afghanistan economy remains unstable in 2025

January 2, 2026
Khaama Press

Afghanistan’s economy remained fragile in 2025, with soaring unemployment, widespread poverty, disrupted trade, and declining incomes deepening hardship for millions of households nationwide.

Afghanistan’s economy remained deeply fragile throughout 2025, with the United Nations reporting unemployment at 75 percent and more than 90 percent of the population living below the poverty line. Years of conflict, political isolation, and shrinking job opportunities have continued to undermine household incomes and overall economic stability.

The UN also warned that over 70 percent of Afghans depended on humanitarian assistance during the year, as poverty, food insecurity, and limited access to livelihoods intensified across both urban and rural areas. Women have been among the hardest hit by the economic downturn.

Thousands of women stated that they have experienced after being pushed out of public institutions, private businesses, and even international organizations. According to UN figures, eight out of ten Afghan women have been excluded from education, employment, and skills training.

Economic pressure intensified after trade between Afghanistan and Pakistan was suspended in October 2025, cutting off a major commercial lifeline. The disruption affected imports, exports, and transit routes, compounding supply shortages and market instability.

Although alternative routes such as Iran’s Chabahar port and Central Asian corridors were introduced, analysts say these options raised transportation costs. As a result, food prices surged, agricultural exports spoiled, and trucks carrying goods remained stranded for weeks.

The United Nations identified deteriorating relations with Pakistan as a key factor behind Afghanistan’s economic shock, noting losses to traders, farmers, and transit markets on both sides. The disruption weakened regional trade integration and damaged local livelihoods.

A World Bank report released in December 2025 warned that rapid population growth, widening trade deficits, and persistent poverty continue to weigh heavily on Afghanistan’s economic outlook. Forced returns of migrants have further strained already overstretched communities.

Signs of fiscal stress have also emerged within the administration, with reports of delayed salary payments to public employees toward the end of the year, reflecting a growing budget shortfall.

Economists caution that without restoring trade flows, easing restrictions on women’s employment, and stabilizing regional economic ties, Afghanistan’s recovery will remain elusive.

International agencies warn that sustained economic decline could deepen humanitarian needs in 2026, unless structural reforms and regional cooperation are prioritized to prevent further deterioration.

Afghanistan economy remains unstable in 2025
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Afghanistan Faces Severe Gender Restrictions as Women Denied Education and Employment in 2025

January 2, 2026
Khaama Press

In 2025, Afghanistan women and girls faced widespread exclusion from education and work, worsening poverty, limiting economic growth, and threatening long-term social development.

Recent reports by the United Nations and international organisations show that in 2025, women and girls in Afghanistan continued to face sweeping restrictions on education, employment, and social life. These limitations have had deep economic and social consequences, even as many Afghans hope schools and universities might reopen to women in 2026.

According to the United Nations Development Programme’s 2025 report, more than 90 percent of Afghanistan women were excluded from employment opportunities, with only about 7 percent engaged in economic activity outside their homes during the past year. These restrictions have weakened household incomes and undermined the country’s prospects for sustainable development.

The UN Security Council’s Monitoring Team described the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan as “grave” in its annual assessment. UNICEF’s “Afghanistan Gender Index 2025” found that eight out of ten Afghanistan women remain deprived of education and work, placing Afghanistan among the countries with the world’s widest gender gaps. Estimates suggest these exclusions cost the Afghanistan economy more than one billion dollars annually.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) also warned that restrictions on women’s access to medical professions and healthcare services are directly affecting daily life. In Kandahar, UNAMA reported that local authorities instructed male dentists not to treat female patients, requiring clinics to employ female doctors instead. These policies have reduced women’s access to healthcare and increased pressure on families and communities.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) identified the systematic exclusion of women and girls from public life as a key driver of Afghanistan’s worsening humanitarian crisis. OCHA said the restrictions have heightened protection risks, including gender-based violence, child labour, and early and forced marriages.

Research published in 2025 by Georgetown University ranked Afghanistan as the worst country in the world for women out of 188 nations. The index, based on participation, justice, and security, found Afghan women at the lowest global levels of safety and access to justice, noting that one in five women experienced violence at home in the past year.

The widespread exclusion of women from education and work has produced severe social and economic fallout. Reduced female participation in the workforce has shrunk family incomes and national productivity, while denying education to girls threatens to entrench long-term inequality across future generations.

Reports confirm that in 2025 Afghanistan remained the only country in the world where girls above sixth grade were barred from schooling solely because of their gender. Experts warn that if this policy continues, it will cause lasting damage to human development, deepen poverty, and widen gender disparities for decades.

International analysts stress that empowering women and enabling their participation in public life is not only a fundamental human right but also essential for sustainable development and poverty reduction. Reopening schools and universities to women could bring significant benefits to health outcomes, economic growth, and social stability.

Following the political changes of 2021, women and girls in Afghanistan were barred from education and many forms of employment “until further notice,” a suspension that has now lasted for years. Despite repeated international appeals, authorities have so far offered no clear timeline or policy shift on restoring these rights.

Before these restrictions, women faced challenges but were still able to participate in education and the workforce. UN and international reports consistently conclude that restoring women’s access to schools, universities, and jobs would play a crucial role in reducing poverty, improving security, and supporting Afghanistan’s long-term development.

Afghanistan Faces Severe Gender Restrictions as Women Denied Education and Employment in 2025
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Flash flooding in Afghanistan leaves at least 17 dead and around 1,800 families affected

January 1, 2026

Associated Press

Another 11 people have been injured as the flooding swept across several regions of the country since Monday.

Devastating flash floods have claimed the lives of at least 17 people in Afghanistan, following the season’s first heavy rain and snow which brought an end to a prolonged dry spell.

Among the victims were five members of a single family, including two children, who perished when the roof of their home caved in on Thursday in Kabkan, Herat province.

A spokesperson for the national disaster management authority confirmed another 11 people have been injured as the flooding swept across several regions of the country since Monday.

The severe weather has also caused extensive damage to infrastructure, killed livestock, and impacted 1,800 families, exacerbating already dire conditions for vulnerable urban and rural communities.

Mohammad Yousaf Hammad, from the authority, stated that assessment teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected areas, with ongoing surveys to ascertain further humanitarian needs.

Afghanistan, much like neighbouring Pakistan and India, is exceptionally vulnerable to extreme weather events, particularly the flash floods that follow seasonal rainfall.

Decades of protracted conflict, inadequate infrastructure, widespread deforestation, and the escalating impacts of climate change have collectively amplified the devastation, especially in remote areas where many homes, constructed from mud, offer scant protection against sudden deluges.

Flash flooding in Afghanistan leaves at least 17 dead and around 1,800 families affected
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3 Years After a Toddler’s Parents Fled Kabul, a Reunion Is Still on Hold

December 31, 2025

Reporting from Beaverton, Ore.

The New York Times

The twisting saga that separated the Hashemis in Oregon from their infant son has reached a new dead end: President Trump’s hold on all visas to the United States.

Husna Hashemi keeps photos on her phone from the day more than three years ago when she handed her infant son, asleep and swaddled in blankets, to her husband’s parents and brother in a city park in Kabul.

She didn’t want to leave — even now, speaking in Dari through an interpreter, she wept as she talked about returning to Afghanistan to be with her youngest child. But her husband, Sayed Rasool Hashemi, had worked for years with the American military, and after the U.S. government fled Afghanistan, the Hashemis faced a terrible choice: Stay and risk everyone’s lives or leave their newborn behind.

“I did not want to go without him,” Ms. Hashemi said. “What kind of mother does that?”

The Hashemis’ story, told from their neat, snug suburban apartment in Beaverton, Ore., where the immigrants are building new lives, holds twists and bureaucratic dead ends that span two presidential administrations and would make Franz Kafka proud. It’s capped, for now, by President Trump’s near-total blockade on Afghan immigration. In its infuriating absurdity is a metaphor of sorts for the long war’s chaotic end.

On a recent evening, the laughter of the Hashemis’ two older children broke the quiet every now and then, but their youngest child’s voice remains missing from their attempt at the American dream.

“It’s just so stupid,” said Brian Torres, a family friend. “So stupid and cruel.”

Sayed Anas Hashemi was just a month old, with no visa or passport, when his parents were forced to leave him behind. Efforts to bring him to the United States have lurched onward, but an attack on two U.S. National Guard soldiers near the White House in November, and the charging of an Afghan immigrant who had also worked for the United States, has left any reunion on hold.

“Every time we get so close, then something happens,” Mr. Hashemi said. “Now, we just don’t know.”

Mr. Hashemi was in his late teens when he began working for the U.S. government in 2004, first doing odd jobs for the military, then serving as an interpreter for American contractors. He considered it the right thing to do — he remembered life as a child under the Taliban as violent and frightening — and an economic opportunity, particularly after he married and started a family.

“They said they will take care of us,” he said of his employers. “I heard that many times.”

When President Joseph R. Biden Jr. set the final timeline for the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, culminating in the frenzied departure from Kabul in August 2021, Mr. Hashemi took his family into hiding.

“Everybody was scared,” Mr. Hashemi said.

The risks to Afghan citizens seen as cooperating with the United States were apparent enough that the United States established an office within the State Department — the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts, or CARE — and offered a special immigrant visa for Afghans deemed likely to face Taliban reprisal. The system, crafted by the Biden administration, was overwhelmed from the start.

Mr. Hashemi began the visa application process even before the Americans left and waited more than a year for the paperwork allowing him to leave for Qatar, the first stop for many Afghans fleeing to America. During that interlude, Ms. Hashemi became pregnant with their third child, and Sayed Anas was born in September 2022.

The family’s paperwork came through one month later. The infant did not have a passport and hadn’t been included on the family’s visa applications because he hadn’t been born. They spent almost four months in Qatar, but Sayed Anas still didn’t have the proper documents when the rest of the family received permission to fly to the United States in February 2023.

They thought their son would be allowed out in months, not years.

Their friend Mr. Torres, a former middle school teacher, started volunteering with a refugee resettlement group after listening to a ride-share driver in Washington, D.C., recount his story about leaving Afghanistan so his children could get an education. The Hashemis were Mr. Torres’s first assignment. He thought the work meant helping with the basics of building a life in a new country, in the suburbs of Portland, Ore., such as how to schedule doctor’s appointments or buy car insurance.

But every conversation with the Hashemis came back to the same reality, that their life in the United States couldn’t truly begin until they had their son.

Even before that, the family’s lawyer, Gabe Espinal, suggested they work directly with a U.S. embassy in Central Asia or the Middle East. But different countries, even different U.S. embassies, have their own policies about when and how they process visa applications or whether they’ll even work with Afghan nationals. Many that do remain are plagued by backlogs.

The Hashemis secured a visa interview appointment for Sayed Anas at the U.S. Embassy in Qatar but with four days’ notice, nowhere near enough time to get him there. Officials at the U.S. Embassy in Tajikistan told them to fill out an online visa form for Sayed Anas. For months, they could not get the link to work.

“I don’t want to call this a comedy of errors because none of it is funny,” Mr. Torres said. “But at every step, something seemed to go wrong.”

This past fall, a reunion felt close. The embassy in Tajikistan told Mr. Hashemi and his lawyer that if they could get Sayed Anas to Dushanbe, the country’s capital, the embassy would process his case.

Then came the National Guard attack.

President Trump declared that “every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan” during the Biden administration must be re-examined. The State Department has frozen visas for Afghans, though the U.S. government website about the presidential proclamation barring Afghan nationals notes that limited exceptions may be made for people younger than 8 with special immigrant visas.

The White House referred questions to the Department of Homeland Security. A spokeswoman for the department did not respond to requests for comment.

Mr. Espinal thinks the evolving federal policy could allow Sayed Anas into the United States, but he’s not certain and has struggled to find someone who can answer his questions. The family also doesn’t know whether Mr. Hashemi, who hopes to fly to Asia to take his son through the final steps in the process and bring him to the United States, would be allowed back in if he made the trip. The State Department and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.

“This family could be reunited in three months,” Mr. Torres said. “Or it could be another three years.”

Meantime, their older children, now 11 and 8, are thriving in school. Mr. Hashemi, who said he was not angry at the U.S. government, has a job with a company that makes gun sights and has created a small support group for other Afghan refugees in Oregon. Ms. Hashemi is taking English classes with other Afghan women but struggles to focus on anything but her missing child.

“She is sick all the time,” Mr. Hashemi said. “She cannot stop crying.”

They’ve watched Sayed Anas grow from a baby to a boy through a screen. The child, now 3, knows who his parents are thanks to regular WhatsApp calls and that they’re trying to bring him to the United States. Like them, he just doesn’t know when that will happen.

“All the time when we call, he says, ‘I want to come there, I want to see your house,’” Mr. Hashemi said. “My brother tells him that I will come get him on a plane. So sometimes he tells me, ‘I see your plane today.’ He sees planes, and he thinks we are coming to take him.”

Anna Griffin the Pacific Northwest bureau chief for The Times, leading coverage of Washington, Idaho, Alaska, Montana and Oregon.

3 Years After a Toddler’s Parents Fled Kabul, a Reunion Is Still on Hold
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Over 10,000 Afghanistan and Pakistan Traders’ Shipments Stalled at Karachi Port

December 31, 2025
Khaama Press

More than 10,000 Afghanistan and Pakistan traders face mounting losses as transit shipments and containers remain stuck at Karachi port due to border closures.

The Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry has warned that over 10,000 Afghan and Pakistani traders are facing severe losses as their transit shipments remain stuck at Karachi port.

Express Tribune reported on Tuesday that closures at key border crossings, including Torkham, Spin Boldak, Chaman, and Ghulam Khan, have caused massive disruptions to trade between the two countries.

Officials said 11,000 to 12,000 transit containers destined for Afghanistan and Central Asian republics are stranded at Karachi port due to the ongoing border shutdowns.

In addition, thousands of trucks carrying imports and exports from traders on both sides are parked at the borders, with perishable goods rotting and financial losses mounting.

The United Nations noted in a report that the continued closure of crossings between Pakistan and Taliban-controlled Afghanistan is costing traders on both sides approximately $1 million daily.

Afghanistan relies heavily on Pakistan’s ports and transit routes for trade, making border closures a major blow to its import-export economy.

Similar disruptions have occurred in the past during political tensions or security incidents, highlighting the fragile nature of trade logistics in the region.

Traders are urging both parties to reopen crossings promptly to prevent further economic damage and avoid a humanitarian impact on communities dependent on trade.

Experts warn that prolonged border closures could disrupt supply chains across South and Central Asia, increase costs for businesses, and deepen regional economic instability.

Over 10,000 Afghanistan and Pakistan Traders’ Shipments Stalled at Karachi Port
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UN Requests $1.71 Billion for Afghanistan Humanitarian Aid in 2026

December 31, 2025
Khaama Press

 

The United Nations has requested $1.71 billion for 2026 to support humanitarian programs in Afghanistan, citing widespread poverty, unemployment, and urgent relief needs.

The United Nations has requested $1.71 billion in funding for humanitarian programs in Afghanistan for 2026, warning that the country remains one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises despite a slight reduction in overall needs.

According to the UN Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, approximately 21.9 million people, nearly 45 percent of the population, will require humanitarian assistance next year. Ongoing conflict, economic fragility, food insecurity, and climate-related shocks are cited as the main drivers of need.

The UN report highlights that years of underinvestment in basic services, combined with recurring natural disasters, widespread drought, and the return of millions of migrants from neighboring countries, have severely weakened the resilience of Afghanistan families.

Aid organizations also noted the impact of restrictions on women and girls, stating that denial of education, employment, and participation in public life reduces household income, increases dependence on humanitarian aid, and limits relief operations.

Afghanistan faces staggering socioeconomic challenges, with UN data indicating nearly 75 percent unemployment and 90 percent of the population living below the poverty line, intensifying vulnerability to crises.

The return of millions of Afghan migrants from Iran and Pakistan in recent years has put immense pressure on local economies, public services, and humanitarian infrastructure, straining an already fragile system.

The UN has warned that continued funding shortages could force aid agencies to scale back life-saving programs, particularly for women, children, and internally displaced persons, at a time when needs remain acute nationwide.

Experts stress that sustained international support, alongside targeted economic and social programs, is critical to mitigating the ongoing humanitarian disaster and preventing further deterioration in the livelihoods of millions of people of Afghanistan.

UN Requests $1.71 Billion for Afghanistan Humanitarian Aid in 2026
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Pakistan-Afghanistan Fued Freezes $3 Billion in Annual Bilateral Trade

December 31, 2025
By RFE/RL staff
Dec 30, 2025, 2:00 PM CST
  • The border closure, triggered by cross-border clashes and accusations of sheltering the TTP rebel group, has trapped approximately 8,000 truckers and halted bilateral trade, which previously amounted to $2 billion to $3 billion annually.
  • The trade halt is inflicting severe economic damage, causing irreparable losses to traders, impacting Pakistan’s citrus exports, and silencing Peshawar’s once-bustling gemstone market.
  • Experts believe that while the Taliban is seeking new trade routes with Iran and Central Asia, the long-term economic opportunities for Afghanistan—such as the TAPI pipeline and regional transport links—will ultimately still require stable relations and doing business with Pakistan.

Kabul

For nearly two months, Sayed Wali, a young Afghan truck driver, has watched the sun rise, and the sun set in the fabled Khyber Pass, which connects western Pakistan to eastern Afghanistan. But he’s not here for the view. He’s stuck.

Wali can’t even leave his 10-wheel truck and its cargo unattended for fear it could be robbed or ransacked.

He was taking a shipment of Afghan imports from Pakistan’s southern seaport city of Karachi through some 1,800 kilometers of roads that wind from the Arabian Sea up through to the treacherous Khyber mountains and onward to Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul.

Then politics got in the way.

Simmering tensions between the Taliban-led Afghan government and Islamabad boiled over into fierce border clashes in early October after Pakistan carried out air strikes inside Afghanistan.

Islamabad accused Kabul of sheltering the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) rebel group, whose attacks killed scores of Pakistani troops in September.

In a repeat of its key lever to pressure landlocked Kabul, Islamabad sealed half a dozen major and minor border crossings with Afghanistan on October 12. But instead of negotiating for reopening the vital trade routes, the Taliban retaliated by shutting the border with Pakistan in early October.

Wali is not alone; some 8,000 truckers are stuck at the two major border crossings along the 2,640 kilometers of the Durand Line, which separates the two countries.

“We are miserable. The cold is now unbearable and we’ve been stranded here for two months away from our families,” Wali recently told RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal.

“We are sick of this misery,” he said. “The two should resolve this problem once and for all.”

In the weeks that followed the diplomatic dispute, Kabul struck new deals to increase trade and open new routes with Iran, Central Asia, and India. The Taliban government called on Afghan traders and investors to seek new partners, suppliers and manufacturers away from Pakistan.

“This has been one of the most debilitating and tragic closures,” said Imtiaz Gul, executive director of the Center for Research and Security Studies, a think tank in Islamabad.

“This has badly impacted tens of thousands of people from both sides — farmers, daily wage workers, traders and truckers,” he said.

Irreparable Losses

Nearly five decades of war and political turmoil have entangled the two countries in a complex web of population movements, trade, transport and mostly free movement across their porous border.

Before the border closure, bilateral trade between Islamabad and Kabul was between $2 billion and $3 billion annually, according to the Pak-Afghan Joint Chambers of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI).

Islamabad was the dominant partner. Its exporters accounted for most of the trade and included industrial goods, pharmaceuticals, cement, and food. Kabul, on the other hand, sent its fresh and dry fruits to Pakistan. The country served as a major transit route for Afghan imports, generating considerable revenue.

Now Islamabad’s predicament is visible. Every winter, it sold more than $50 million worth of citrus fruits to Afghanistan and, via its routes, to its western Central Asian neighbors. But this year’s crops are being sold cheaply domestically.

Shahid Hussain, the senior vice president of the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industries in the northwestern city of Peshawar, says the trade war has already caused irreparable losses to traders and investors in both countries.

“There is no way traders can recover from these losses,” he told RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal. “Everything they had built over the past few decades has been ruined.”

In Peshawar, the fallout from the continued border closure is everywhere.

The city’s once-bustling gemstone market is silent. Most of its shops and offices are closed, as no raw stones used in ornaments and jewelry have crossed into Pakistan from Afghanistan.

Most of the minerals processed and refined in this market are mined in various parts of the Hindu Kush mountains, which shape and dominate the Afghan landscape.

“If the border continues to be closed, it will affect thousands of workers and associated businessmen,” said Abdul Jalil, the president of the Peshawar Gemstone Association.

‘Traders Cannot Absorb More Losses’

In Kabul, Younas Mohmand, a business leader, says insulating trade from the troubled bilateral relations between the two neighbors might provide a good beginning toward restoring ties.

“Business ties should resume in return for future guarantees from Pakistan,” he told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi repeating the Taliban’s key demand from Islamabad. “Our traders cannot absorb more losses.”

Graeme Smith, a bestselling author and regional analyst, says Kabul will need Islamabad for major projects aimed at transforming it into a trade, transport and energy hub between Central Asia and South Asia.

“Like it or not, most of the big economic opportunities will require doing business with Pakistan,” he said.

First conceived nearly three decades ago, the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project remains a pipe dream.

Similarly, sending Central Asia’s abundant hydropower to Pakistan and linking the region to Islamabad via a railway line would require stability within Central Asia and stable relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

By RFE/RL 

Pakistan-Afghanistan Fued Freezes $3 Billion in Annual Bilateral Trade
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U.S. Allocates $2 Billion to UN, Afghanistan Excluded from Aid

December 30, 2025
Khaama Press

The United States announced $2 billion in humanitarian aid for the United Nations, but Afghanistan will not be included due to political interference concerns.

The United States has announced $2 billion in humanitarian aid for the United Nations, though Afghanistan and Yemen will not be included in the assistance.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that the new funding model aims to share the burden of UN humanitarian programs with other developed nations.

Officials described the amount as a fraction of past U.S. contributions, but still significant enough to maintain America’s position as the world’s largest humanitarian donor.

Afghanistan and Yemen, both facing severe humanitarian crises, were excluded due to political interventions in aid distribution, according to U.S. authorities.

American officials cited Taliban interference in Afghanistan and Houthi control in Yemen as the main reasons for withholding assistance from these countries.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) annually requests funding to support millions of vulnerable populations affected by conflict, natural disasters, and food insecurity.

Historically, the U.S. has been the largest contributor to global humanitarian efforts, though President Donald Trump’s administration reduced foreign aid and pressed the UN to downsize or eliminate programs.

The $2 billion allocation represents the first phase of U.S. support for the current UN humanitarian appeal, signaling continued engagement despite political and operational challenges.

Experts say excluding Afghanistan and Yemen highlights the growing impact of political interference on international aid and raises concerns about the effectiveness of humanitarian responses in conflict zones.

U.S. Allocates $2 Billion to UN, Afghanistan Excluded from Aid
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