American senators have tabled a bill in the US Senate, demanding a deeper investigation into the Taliban’s capture in Afghanistan and sanctions on the group as well as those who assisted them in dethroning the Ashraf Ghani-led regime. As many as 22 Senators led by Senator Jim Risch have presented the bill.
The proposed bill, ‘Afghanistan Counterterrorism, Oversight, and Accountability Act’, calls for a comprehensive report on who supported the Taliban during America’s 20 years in Afghanistan, helped the terrorist group to capture Kabul on August 15th, and supported their offensive on Panjshir Valley. The proposed legislation requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Defence and the Director of National Intelligence, to submit a report on entities providing support to the Taliban to the appropriate congressional committees. The report must reach the relevant committees “not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this act, and not less frequently than annually thereafter”.
The first report shall include “an assessment of support by state and non-state actors, including the government of Pakistan, for the Taliban between 2001 and 2020,” including the provision of sanctuary space, financial support, intelligence support, logistics and medical support, training, equipping, and tactical, operation or strategic direction. It also requires “an assessment of support by state and non-state actors, including the government of Pakistan, for the September 2021 offensive of the Taliban against the Panjshir Valley and the Afghan resistance”.
The proposed bill also seeks to impose sanctions on the Taliban and others in Afghanistan for terrorism, drug trafficking, and human rights abuses, as well as on those providing support to the Taliban, including foreign governments. It states that the US should not recognise any member of the Taliban as the ambassador of Afghanistan to the United States or as the ambassador of Afghanistan to the United Nations, and places restrictions on non-humanitarian foreign assistance to the war-torn country. A comprehensive review of foreign assistance to entities that support the Taliban is also sought. The bill also seeks to establish a US State Department Task Force to focus on the evacuation of American citizens, legal permanent residents, and Afghan Special Immigrant Visas who are still stuck in Afghanistan, as well as impose oversight mechanisms on the processing of SIVs and refugees.
It also calls for strategies for counterterrorism and for the disposition of Taliban-captured US equipment and selling of those arms, ammunitions military gear and even military vehicles in Pakistan shops.
If the bill is passed then the doomsday of Pakistan is an ORVM object. It is closer than it appears to be. The Asian Development, The International Monetary Fund even the World Bank will not be able to offer loans or monetary support to Pakistan. Pakistan may lose the GSP+ status at the European Union. Pakistan will surely lose the exports they do to the United States of America. Pakistan now sends almost 25% of their total export to the USA and almost 50% of their total export to the European Union. These may stop overnight. Pakistan gets a huge amount of money from the European Union as humanitarian aid. That also may stop if this bill is passed in the US parliament.
Now Pakistan is praying five times a day to stop the bill from getting passed. The chances of this bill getting passed are very high. Both Republicans and Democrats are in support of this Bill. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest-ranking military officer of the US and the Principal Military Advisor to the President of the United States General Mark Milley has also ascertained Pakistan’s role in the last 20 yrs of Afghan adventure of the US. Defense Secretary and Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin has confirmed Pakistan’s role in the Panjshir offensive of the Taliban. Moreover, the present US government needs a dustbin to throw its garbages. They surely need someone to blame on for their humiliation in Afghanistan.
While the Pakistani media and political experts are busy blaming Narendra Modi and his visit to the US for all these, India should actually contribute with all the information it has on the subject matter to make the process of passing the bill easy for US senators.
