AS DELIVERED
Mr. President, I’ll be brief.
Let me just state that if the Russian Federation believes that there was an economy in Afghanistan to be destroyed, it’s been destroyed by the Taliban.
And also let me be clear that the United States has not turned our backs on Afghanistan. We have remained in the country*, we have continued to provide essential assistance to the Afghan people, and we are working closely with the international community, with partners to support the establishment of mechanisms that will protect, preserve, and disperse on a limited basis Afghan Central Bank assets for the benefit of the Afghan people.
But I also want to be clear that we will not turn these funds over to the Taliban to be used for their purposes that do not contribute to the wellbeing of Afghans.
Thank you.
Original source can be found here.
