Russia Again Calls For Release Of Afghanistan’s Frozen Assets

Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s presidential envoy for Afghanistan, said Moscow and the Taliban administration want Afghanistan’s frozen assets to be released. However, he said no breakthrough is expected soon because the United States and Europe are ignoring the issue.

Speaking to the Russian newspaper Izvestia, Kabulov said the current deadlock was the result of Western actions.

Kabulov said the responsibility for releasing Afghanistan’s frozen assets lies with the United States and European countries, as they were the ones that imposed the freeze, not Russia or the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

Kabulov added that there are currently no discussions with either the United States or European governments on the issue.

Russia has repeatedly raised the matter at regional forums, including meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the Moscow Format.

The United States transferred around $3.5 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank reserves to the Swiss-based Afghan Fund. Taliban efforts to gain access to those assets have so far been unsuccessful.

The fund was established to support Afghanistan’s economic stability while preventing the Taliban from accessing the money. It is overseen by a board comprising representatives from the United States, Switzerland, and two former Afghan officials, Anwar-ul-Haq Ahady and Shah Mohammad Mehrabi.

The fate of another $3.5 billion in Afghan reserves remains uncertain because of compensation claims filed in the United States by families of victims of the September 11 attacks. The plaintiffs argue that the Taliban bears responsibility because of its links to al-Qaeda, which carried out the attacks on New York’s World Trade Center.