US to Slash Afghan Aid by $1 Billion

The Trump Administration has slashed $1 billion in aid to Afghanistan on Monday, following a rather unsuccessful visit to Kabul by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who sought to secure a power-sharing deal between Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah.

The Afghan presidential election ended with contested results, with both Ghani and Abdullah claiming victory. This happened the last time, but instead of a deal they both held competing inaugurations, and now claim to each be the president.

US officials were deeply critical of the meetings between Pompeo and the two, saying they were disappointed in the men and their conduct, going so far as to say they’d dishonored America and its coalition partners, and pose a direct threat to US interests.

On top of the billion dollars already cut, officials suggested that further aid could be cut in the future, and that the US is going to do a full review of all support for the Afghan government, such as it is.

This could be a particularly bad time for the Afghan government to lose US support, as a peace deal with the Taliban is in hand, and the Ghani government has been complicating it by refusing prisoner releases. With no progress on power-sharing, it seems the Afghan government is more of a liability than anything.