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Miller accuses House Republicans of subpoenaing Blinken over Afghanistan when he’s away

He said the State Department told the committee weeks in advance about Blinken´s schedule, so “it very much does not appear that they´re acting in good faith.”

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US State Department lashed out Thursday at House Republicans over a subpoena for testimony about the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, accusing them of repeatedly calling for hearings on days they knew Secretary of State Antony Blinken was unavailable to appear.

Rep. Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he was trying to accommodate Blinken, who faces the threat of being held in contempt of Congress if he doesn't appear, the Associated Press reported.

The Texas Republican had first set a hearing for Thursday, while Blinken was in Egypt and France. He then changed the date to Tuesday, when Blinken will be at the annual U.N. General Assembly gathering of world leaders in New York and attending President Joe Biden's speech at the time of the hearing.

"They have unilaterally selected a date when we have told them in advance that he will be not in Washington, D.C., because he will be elsewhere carrying out important meetings to advance the foreign policy interests of the United States," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.

He said the State Department told the committee weeks in advance about Blinken´s schedule, so "it very much does not appear that they´re acting in good faith."

McCaul said the department was being "disingenuous" because it had declined repeated requests to pick a date in September for Blinken to testify. "If we are forced to hold Secretary Blinken in contempt of Congress, he has no one to blame but himself," the Republican committee chairman said Thursday in a statement.

The subpoena for Blinken´s testimony is the latest in a series of moves by McCaul and other House Republicans over the past 18 months to hold the Biden administration accountable for what they have called a "stunning failure of leadership" after Islamic Emirate forces seized the Afghan capital far more rapidly than U.S. intelligence had foreseen as American forces pulled out.

Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly brought up the disastrous exit from Afghanistan in the campaign, trying to link it to Democratic rival Kamala Harris. Several watchdog reviews and a more than 18-month investigation by House Republicans have failed to pinpoint an instance where the vice president had a particular impact on decision-making on the withdrawal.

Blinken has testified about Afghanistan 14 times, including four times before McCaul's committee.

Miller said Blinken was willing to testify again if a mutually convenient time could be arranged but noted that Congress will be in recess from the end of next week until after the November election.

 

 

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Pakistani minister calls for increased foreign aid for Afghan refugees

He emphasized the need for optimal utilization of resources to effectively achieve the objectives of the Commissionorate of Afghan Refugees.

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Pakistan's Minister for States and Frontier Regions, Kashmir Affairs, and Gilgit Baltistan, Amir Muqam, has called on the international community to increase funding and support for Afghan refugees.

Speaking at a meeting held at the office of the Commissioner of Afghan Refugees in Karachi, Muqam said that Afghan refugees' needs are growing and require substantial resources.

He emphasized the need for optimal utilization of resources to effectively achieve the objectives of the Commissionorate of Afghan Refugees.

“We look forward to continuing our collaboration to ensure the safety and dignity of refugees within our borders,” Muqam stated.

Pakistan hosts 1.45 million registered Afghan refugees.

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Acting FM says IEA in control of 39 Afghan embassies globally

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Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi says currently, 39 embassies and consulates of Afghanistan in different countries are under the control of the Islamic Emirate.

Delivering the foreign ministry’s annual report, Muttaqi also said that IEA’s new ambassador to Uzbekistan will visit Tashkent next Saturday, and that Russia will remove the IEA from their list of banned groups.

He stated that Kabul’s relations with the countries of the region and the world are expanding, and that in the past year, many countries have held bilateral and multilateral meetings with the authorities on important issues.

“During the last year, dozens of Afghan diplomats were introduced to Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, China, Doha, and the United Arab Emirates, and the mentioned countries accepted these diplomats and all this indicates the expansion of our diplomatic relations,” Muttaqi said.

Comparing the current security situation with that under the former government, he said the annual casualty toll in Afghanistan now amounts to the daily toll in the past.

He said as many as 300 people were killed in the country each day under the previous government.

He also said in response to US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s comments on retaking Bagram Airfield that those who have failed in the country will no longer be "happy" with Afghanistan.

Ministry officials also pointed out that conditions for the implementation of large economic projects have been established, and that effective measures have been taken to strengthen the level of interaction and diplomatic relations with countries in the region and the world.

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Afghanistan is ruptured from the international community: UN envoy

Otunbayeva said that the end of armed conflict in Afghanistan has delivered a period of stability and created opportunity for a positive peace.

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Afghanistan is ruptured from the international community, Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Afghanistan, said at the UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday.

Otunbayeva said that the end of armed conflict in Afghanistan has delivered a period of stability and created opportunity for a positive peace.

“A number of positive steps have been taken in the fields of economy, infrastructure, and foreign relations to seize this opportunity and begin to address the many negative legacies of war,” she said. “I have growing concerns, however, that this opportunity is being missed. The Afghan population faces a serious humanitarian and development crisis as international funding drops.”

The envoy, however, noted that the adoption of the moral oversight law shortly after the Doha meeting has undermined this process.

“We are at the same time trying to address the political legacy of Afghanistan’s long conflict. In the current situation, Afghanistan is ruptured from the international community. Individual Taliban (IEA), many of whom are de facto ministers, are under sanctions and cannot travel without permission from this Council. Afghanistan’s Central Bank assets are frozen, limiting the development potential of the private sector,” she said.

At the meeting, US and UK representatives also called on the IEA to reverse restrictions on women and girls.

“The Taliban (IEA) cannot expect the international community to move forward on the UN process without first meeting their international obligations on the fundamental freedoms of women and girls, political inclusion, and counter terrorism.” said Jess Jambert-Gray, Deputy Political Coordinator of UK at UN.

Chinese and Russian envoys expressed over security risks from Afghanistan.

“Terrorist forces such as Da’esh, Al-Qaida, and ETIM are still active in Afghanistan, posing a threat to Afghanistan and international and regional security. We call on the interim government of Afghanistan to take vigorous actions to resolutely combat the various terrorist forces in its territory, and to prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming an enclave for terrorist organizations.” Said Fu Cong, Chinese envoy to UN.

Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia said: “The Russian Federation has consistently advocated for a realistic and comprehensive approach to Afghanistan, which should be based on objective analysis and a balanced assessment of the situation. It is imperative to have constructive cooperation within the international community on the Afghan issue. First and foremost, it means paying due regard for the needs of the Afghans themselves and rejecting one’s own narrow interests, as well as maintaining patient dialogue with the de facto Afghan authorities on a wide range of pressing problems, without blackmail or pressure.”

Pakistan’s envoy Munir Akram termed the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as the largest terrorist organization in Afghanistan.

He said that TTP is conducting almost daily terrorist attacks against Pakistan with full support and protection of the Islamic Emirate and sponsorship of Pakistan’s major adversary.

The Islamic Emirate, however, denies all these allegations and human rights violations and says that if anyone has evidence about the presence of terrorists, they can provide them.

"We have six neighbors, No neighboring country has complained. There is only one country that sometimes makes allegations. Unfortunately, instead of getting information and stating the facts, the Secretary General of the United Nations made an accusation that did not suit him,” said Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

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