Masood Saifullah

DW/Deutsche Welle
February 5, 2025

Taliban-ruled Afghanistan lacks the resources to provide its people with basic public services. Experts warn a permanent cut of US aid could have devastating consequences for the Afghan people.

USAID funds projects in Afghanistan that assist with essential public services,

Moves by US President Donald Trump suspending US foreign development assistance while curtailing the operations of USAID threaten to have a major impact on Afghanistan, which is dependent on outside help for essential services.

Despite withdrawing troops and other officials from Afghanistan in August 2021, the US has remained the country’s largest donor.

According to a report by the office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, Washington has “appropriated or otherwise made available more than $21 billion [€20.2 billion] in assistance to Afghanistan and to Afghan refugees” since the Taliban seized full control of the country.

The US maintains that aid funds are directed toward the Afghan people, with safeguards in place to prevent the Taliban from accessing them.

Taliban facing ‘chaos’

However, the Taliban have indirectly benefited from the flow of US dollars, which has helped stabilize the Afghan currency and mitigate the risk of rapid inflation. The suspension of US aid threatens to upend this fragile balance.

“Stopping US foreign aid, including USAID funding, has caused chaos among the Taliban,” Ghaus Janbaz, a former Afghan diplomat, told DW.

Many experts argue that foreign aid to Afghanistan, including the hundreds of millions provided annually by the US, has inadvertently helped the Taliban maintain control over the country.

With the flow of funds drying up, they believe the Taliban could either succumb to international demands or face stronger opposition from within the country.

“In the past three years, the Taliban have failed to establish a self-sustaining economy, making them heavily dependent on such aid,” Janbaz added.

Afghan people will pay the price, say activists

Since regaining control of Afghanistan, the Taliban have systematically denied women basic rights, including education and work outside the home.

Under Taliban rule, Afghan women are prohibited from showing their faces in public. The issue of women’s rights has remained a major barrier to any country establishing official relations with the Taliban.

As a result, no country in the world has formally recognized the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.

The Taliban have also failed to establish an inclusive government or introduce a process for Afghan citizens to participate in public life.

While calls to increase pressure on the Taliban have grown, some caution that cutting vital aid will only lead to greater suffering for the Afghan people.

“According to UN reports, 26 million people in Afghanistan depend on foreign aid for survival,” said Wazhma Frogh, an Afghan women’s rights activist based outside the country who works with aid organizations still operating in Afghanistan.

“If humanitarian organizations lose access to funds, they will be unable to provide even the most basic assistance,” she told DW.

“The Taliban do not have any agenda for support or development of the Afghan people. The only assistance comes from the UN, international agencies and Afghan aid organizations,” she added, warning that Trump’s decision to cut aid will significantly worsen conditions for ordinary Afghans.

The reduction in aid to Afghanistan is a result of President Trump’s sweeping executive orders, which were not specifically targeted at Afghanistan but on development aid as a whole.

Afghanistan appears to be on the sidelines of Trump’s foreign policy agenda at the moment, with conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine taking focus.

During a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on February 4, Trump was asked about his plans for Afghanistan by an Afghan journalist.

He responded that he could not understand “her beautiful accent,” leaving it unclear whether he genuinely failed to comprehend the question or was avoiding it altogether.

“I don’t think the Trump administration has a plan for Afghanistan yet,” said Frogh.

However, Trump has been vocal about his demands from the Taliban — namely the return of military equipment left behind by the US and control over Bagram air base, which he claims is now under Chinese influence, a claim the Taliban have denied.

According to former diplomat Janbaz, these remarks do not reflect a concrete US strategy toward Afghanistan but rather serve as part of Trump’s campaign rhetoric.

“Time will reveal how Trump handles Afghanistan, but what is clear is that his approach will not mirror that of the previous administration,” he concluded.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn

by Siyar Sirat

WASHINGTON — U.S. Congressman Greg Stanton (D-AZ) has reaffirmed his commitment to supporting Afghan refugees, particularly those who worked alongside American forces and are now seeking resettlement in the United States.

During a visit to a refugee resettlement center in Arizona, Stanton met with several Afghan families and pledged to do “everything in his power” to assist them.

“I met with Afghan families at the Arizona refugee center this week,” he wrote in a post on X, sharing a video of his visit. “Our Afghan allies risked their lives to help U.S. troops. We owe it to them to do everything we can to help them find stability and opportunity here—including passing the Afghan Adjustment Act.”

Resettlement in limbo

Stanton’s remarks come as President Donald J. Trump has moved to suspend most foreign aid and development assistance, a decision that has also halted the resettlement of more than 40,000 Afghan refugees awaiting relocation to the United States.

Many of these Afghans worked alongside U.S. troops during America’s 20-year presence in Afghanistan and are now at risk of reprisals from the Taliban.

Some Afghan refugees have described facing arrests, torture, and death threats due to their past affiliations with the U.S. military.

With the future of their resettlement uncertain, advocates and lawmakers, including Stanton, have continued to push for greater protections for those left behind.