ST. PETERSBURG (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2021) Pakistan intends to focus on the humanitarian efforts in Afghanistan and will continue to send trucks with aid to the country, Mansoor Ahmad Khan, the Pakistani ambassador to Afghanistan, told Sputnik.
"Form Sunday, Pakistan started sending the humanitarian aid by trucks through our land border. On Sunday, we have received 13 trucks containing food and medical supplies for different provinces in Afghanistan and we will carry on. In the next coming weeks it will remain our focus in order to insure that the Afghan people do not face humanitarian disaster," Khan said.
The Afghan economy is facing collapse after the takeover by the Taliban (a terrorist group banned in Russia) in mid-August led to automatic suspensions of international aid, which the US-backed government had come to rely on, and freezing of Afghan assets abroad. The International Monetary Fund also blocked an automatic payout of $460 million and suspended the country's special drawing rights in August.
In his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on world leaders to build up humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan as it is on the brink of a catastrophe under the Taliban rule. Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also urged the United States and other countries to help restore Afghanistan, as almost half of the country's population lives below the poverty line and 14 million people face a food crisis.
