Watchdog can't guarantee US assistance to Afghanistan is 'not currently funding the Taliban'

A federal watchdog told lawmakers on Wednesday that he couldn’t assure them that U.S. assistance in Afghanistan is “not currently funding the Taliban.”  

John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, told the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability that, “while I agree, and we all agree Afghanistan faces a dire humanitarian and economic situation, it is critical that our assistance not be diverted by the Taliban.”  

“Unfortunately, as I sit here today, I cannot assure this committee or the American taxpayer we are not currently funding the Taliban,” he added. “Nor can I assure you that the Taliban are not diverting the money we are sending from the intended recipients, which are the poor Afghan people."

Later in the hearing, Sopko said "I haven’t seen a starving Taliban fighter on TV. They all seem to be fat, dumb and happy. I see a lot of starving Afghan children on TV. So I’m wondering where all this funding is going." 

Sopko explained that the United States has appropriated $2 billion for Afghan assistance since the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Approximately $147 billion has been appropriated for relief and reconstruction in Afghanistan since 2002, according to SIGAR. 

Sopko testified alongside three other inspector generals at the hearing focused on the Afghanistan withdrawal, including Department of Defense Inspector General Robert Storch, Department of State Acting Inspector General Diana Shaw and U.S. Agency for International Development Acting Deputy Inspector General Nicole L. Angarella.  

The Biden administration has sought to direct funds to Afghanistan through international organizations and other NGOs, CNN reported. SIGAR has warned that without observers on the ground in the country, aid could be diverted before reaching its intended communities.

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‘Failure’  

The Republican-led committee on Wednesday targeted the Biden administration’s handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, repeatedly alleging the long-awaited move was rushed and amounted to a catastrophe. But Democrats hit back at their colleagues across the aisle, targeting agreements and moves made under the Trump administration and beyond.  

Biden’s administration has acknowledged that it should have anticipated Afghanistan’s collapse and evacuated troops more quickly after the U.S. began withdrawing military forces. It has previously criticized the Trump administration for lowering U.S. troop levels in the country and negotiating with the Taliban without consulting with the then-Afghan government and allies.  

• Sopko on Wednesday told lawmakers “The failure to build a democratic, self-sustainable Afghan state, which was the purpose for us going into Afghanistan, was the result of many decisions made over the course of four presidential administrations.”  

Contributing: Francesca Chambers, Tom Vanden Brook and Josh Meyer, Paste BN