Jake Sullivan, Biden’s National Security Advisor, joined ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday to discuss sending humanitarian aid to Afghanistan after the disastrous withdrawal led by the Biden administration allowed for a quick Taliban takeover, resulting in 13 U.S. troops dead and many American citizens stranded.
Sullivan explained the surprising move, that comes amid bipartisan disapproval of Biden’s negligent approach to withdrawal which left behind $85 billion in U.S. military-grade weaponry, will depend on the Taliban’s ability to keep commitments to the United States.
“It will be about if [members of the Taliban] follow through on their commitments to not allow Afghanistan to be a base from which terrorists can attack the United States or any other country,” Sullivan said.
An unnamed State Department spokesperson reportedly stated, “Broadly speaking, a secure and stable political environment is important to deliver and administer the assistance needed by the people of Afghanistan.”
“We are reviewing assistance for Afghanistan and the department and USAID [the U.S. Agency for International Development] are prepared to adjust non-humanitarian U.S. assistance programming as needed to ensure it continues to advance U.S. interests,” said the spokesperson, according to Roll Call.
Lawmakers will be returning to Washington D.C. to work on the budget and discuss sending humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. However, whether tax dollars intended for humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan will actually be used by the Taliban, is a pressing question many Americans are concerned about.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken countered this by claiming that funds for Afghanistan would not be funneled through the Taliban, but through “the U.N. and NGO’s.”
“We expect that those efforts will not be impeded by the Taliban or anyone else,” Blinken continued in a statement.
Considering the horrific events that occurred during Biden’s surrender to the Taliban, which showed hostility and violence toward the U.S. during troop withdrawal, it’s appalling that the Biden administration would consider sending millions in humanitarian aid that could end up in the militant group’s hands.
