The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has reacted sharply to the U.S. move to transfer $3.5 billion in Afghan central bank assets into a new Swiss-based trust fund that will be shielded from the Islamic Emirate and used to help stabilize Afghanistan’s economy. The Afghan foreign ministry called the creation of the fund unacceptable, as reported by Tolo News. “If the reserves are disbursed without taking into consideration legitimate demands of the Afghans, the Islamic Emirate will be forced to impose fines against, and ban activities of, all individuals, institutions and companies that facilitate this illegal venture and seek to misuse Central Bank reserves for humanitarian and other purposes,” the ministry said. Currently, the fund’s board of trustees consists of two Afghan economic experts, a U.S. official, and a Swiss government representative.
