Reuters: US offered Kosovo economic, political favors for sheltering thousands of Afghans

Kosovo and Albania are the countries with which the American administration has discussed, according to Reuters, which has sought to accommodate Afghans associated with the US until the process of adopting their American visas is completed.

These sources have told Reuters that the United States has offered Kosovo economic and political favors for the seizure of several thousand Afghans. But American diplomats have said there are concerns in Washington about Kosovo's ability to accommodate Afghans.

The US Embassy in Pristina and the Government of Kosovo have not yet answered the question of Radio Free Europe regarding this information.

In Afghanistan heavy fighting is under way between Afghan government forces and Taliban, who are aiming to take as much control of the territory as possible.

The Taliban offensive began in the month, shortly after foreign forces, including those of the United States, announced they have begun withdrawing from Afghanistan, after about 20 years of military operations there.

Many Afghans who have worked with foreign forces fear the revenge of Taliban militants because of their work.

The U.S. State Department has announced a new programme that enables thousands of Afghans the opportunity to move into the United States as refugees.

Thousands of Afghans who will be part of this programme must be transported to a third country, and wait for 12 to 14 months until the entire app is tested.

Failure to accept Afghans

The inauguration of several countries to admit Afghans has prompted the administration to call on others who may be willing to assist in this direction, officials said.

Two American officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the countries the US administration has been negotiating with were puzzled about taking Afghans because of concerns about the quality of security verification and health control for COVID-19 before they were allowed to fly.

President Biden's administration has seen the possibility of sending Afghans to Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. But no progress has yet been achieved in this regard.

The embassies of Albania, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan did not respond to Reuters agency's request to comment on the issue.

A US State Department official told Reuters that “concerns of the type could be expected: Who are these people? How do you know these people? Can you make sure these people get visas in the United States?

But this official refused to confirm which countries the United States is holding talks with.

An agreement with Qatar on the shelter of some 8,000 Afghans was concluded weeks ago, an American official said, but it has not been officially disclosed.

So far, around 1,200 Afghans have been evacuated to the United States and that number will rise to 3,500 in the coming weeks.

Afghanistan in chaos

Secretary - General NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, said on Friday (August 13th) that the alliance will continue its civilian diplomatic presence in Afghanistan and that it will continue to support Afghan troops in their encounter with the Taliban offensive.

Our goal is to support the Afghan government and security forces as much as we can. The priority is our staff's safety. NATO will maintain our diplomatic presence in Kabul and will continue to adapt to the need,” said Stoltenberg, in a statement following a meeting of NATO representatives.

The Taliban have taken over a series of regional capitals during an offensive that began immediately after foreign forces in May began withdrawing from Afghanistan.

The United States and Great Britain announced on Thursday that they will send thousands of troops to Afghanistan to evacuate their citizens.

On Friday, it was reportedly launched the disposal of some 3,000 American troops.

The Taliban must understand that they will not be recognised by the international community if they take the country by force. We remain committed to supporting a political solution to the” conflict, the NATO statement said.

“Situate in Afghanistan is catastrophic”, a Western diplomat told AFP.

NATO allies Denmark and Norway announced they would temporarily close their embassies in Kabul.

The perpetrators took over in Kandahar, Afghanistan's second largest city, and increasingly are approaching the capital, Kabul.

Some agencies report that it is a matter of time when the Taliban offensive will begin to take over the capital.

The Afghan government has now lost control of most of the country.

United States President Joe Biden said this week that he has not regretted his decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, stressing that Washington has spent more than $1 trillion in the US's longest war and has lost thousands of troops.

United States-led forces have ousted the Taliban from power in October 2001.

The Taliban have been sheltering that world of Osama Bin Laden and other al-Qaeda figures linked to the 11 September terrorist attacks that year in the United States.

US President Joe Biden has said that American attraction is now reasonable, since American forces have made sure Afghanistan will no longer become the basis for foreign jihadists to carry out anti-Western plots. /rel/