Unfreezing of Afghan Assets Alone Unable to Resolve Humanitarian Issues - UN

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) - The unfreezing of Afghan foreign-held assets would not resolve dire humanitarian issues facing the country, but would help the economic situation, UN Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan Ramiz Alakbarov told Sputnik.

"It will improve, of course. To what extent and in what form is another question," Alakbarov said, when asked if a return of Afghan frozen assets would improve the humanitarian situation.

Any inflow of resources would mitigate the situation, but it is hard to predict to what extent since it's unclear whether the funds would go to social spending, the UN official continued.

"Reserves do not always mean that they are intended for these purposes. Reserves are a factor of stabilization for the banking activity. It is a financial management tool. This does not mean that a person who does not have food today will definitely have this money in their hands. The return of funds will improve the economic situation, but will not solve these issues," he explained.

Earlier in August, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials, that the Biden administration will not release any of the $7 billion in Afghan reserves held on American soil, as the Taliban (under UN sanctions for terrorism) played host to the late al-Qaeda* leader. Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in a US strike in Kabul in July.

Reuters later reported, however, that the administration still plans to continue the talks on releasing Afghan multi-billion foreign-held assets frozen after the Taliban took over last year.

In February President Joe Biden signed an executive order to allow the $7 billion to be split between a humanitarian trust and compensation for the families of victims of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks against the United States.

* a terrorist group, banned in Russia