LONDON, 21 February 2022, (TON): Former British Foreign Minister David Miliband has warned “western countries are damaging their reputations and causing catastrophic damage to the Afghan people by withholding cash supplies.”

The CEO of the International Rescue Committee told The Guardian, “if we wanted to create a failed state we could not have a more effective policy mix than the one we have at the moment.”

He added “I simply do not understand the lack of urgency to get this thing moving. It genuinely befuddles me that we should have allowed this to get so much worse so quickly.”

Miliband and other high-profile figures and officials are urging US President Joe Biden and the World Bank to release urgent funding for Afghanistan to avert a humanitarian disaster and rebuild the country’s economy.

Miliband warned that an estimated $4 billion required to urgently supply the country with aid would likely rise to $10 billion next year if the country’s needs are not immediately met.

MOGADISHU, 21 February 2022, (TON): Somalia’s president and premier have declared null and void a deal signed by their energy minister with a US company to explore for oil and gas off the coast of the troubled Horn of Africa nation.

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Abdirashid Mohamed Ahmed and Coastline Exploration Ltd had announced on Saturday seven production sharing agreementscovering deep water offshore blocks.

Ahmed hailed it as a huge moment for Somalia, one of the poorest countries in the world, which is in the grip of a political crisis over long-delayed elections and also battling a jihadist insurgency.

He said in a statement “recently completed seismic programmes indicate that Somalia has the potential to become a significant oil and gas producing country.”

The PSAs will have an immediate positive effect on the country, he said, and are expected to generate tens of millions of dollars for federal and state coffers. But both Somalia’s president and prime minister, who are often at loggerheads, swiftly denounced the deal.

NEW DELHI, 21 February 2022, (TON): Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said “India and the US are in dialogue to look at ways, beyond a free trade agreement, to promote economic ties by providing better market access and enhanced engagement on investments.”

The Commerce and Industry Minister said that both countries are working on many things to further boost economic ties.

"The US has taken a decision not to do any other new free trade agreement. Now that is the call the US has taken, it's not about whether they want to do a deal with India, they have taken a call at the macro level.

He said while addressing the 19th Annual Harvard India Conference "however my counterpart and I are in dialogue to see how at least we can look at other ways beyond an FTA, better market access, more engagement on investments, and maybe identify products where we could support each other.”

Talking about India's trade, the minister said the country's merchandise exports would cross the $400-billion mark in this fiscal.

"Our imports are also all-time high and we welcome it" because through imports a country gets technology, capital equipment, and intermediate products which help in promoting domestic manufacture.

NEW DELHI, 21 February 2022, (TON): India has asked its citizens including students who are living in Ukraine to return if their stay in the east European nation is not deemed essential.

Family members of Indian embassy staff in Ukraine will also be sent home, sources have told media.

In a second advisory, the Indian embassy in Ukraine said Indian citizens should look for any available commercial or charter flight to get out of the country amid tensions over a possible invasion by Russia.

The earlier advisory asked students to leave Ukraine as soon as possible.

The Indian embassy in Ukraine tweeted "in view of the continued high levels of tensions and uncertainties with respect to the situation in Ukraine, all Indian nationals whose stay is not deemed essential and all Indian students, are advised to leave Ukraine temporarily.”

The India embassy said "indian students are advised to also get in touch with respective student contractors for updates on charter flights, and also continue to follow embassy Facebook, website and Twitter for any update.”

NEW DELHI, 21 February 2022, (TON): A senior Jal Shakti Ministry official said “a 10-member Indian delegation will visit Pakistan for the annual meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission from March 1-3.”

The official said “in a first since the signing of the Indus Water Treaty between the two countries, three female officers will also be part of the Indian delegation, which will be advising the Indian Commissioner on various issues during the meeting.”

Last year, a delegation led by the Pakistan Commissioner for Indus Waters had visited India for the annual meeting.

Pradeep Kumar Saxena, Indian Commissioner for Indus Waters, told media “the annual meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission will be held in Islamabad, Pakistan between March 1 and 3, 2022.”

The delegation will comprise Saxena’s advisors from the Central Water Commission, the Central Electricity Authority, the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation and the Ministry of External Affairs.

KABUL, 21 February 2022, (TON): Geneva Call says that the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is dire and warned that if cash does not reach Afghanistan soon, poverty and misery will increase in this country.

In an exclusive interview, head of the organization, General Alain Délétroz, said that humanitarian aid alone will not prevent the crisis in Afghanistan and that the country’s economy needed to become healthier as more money was provided.

Mr. Délétroz said “as a humanitarian organization we avoid commenting on political issues, but what we keep saying and telling our donors, if there is no money coming to Afghanistan at all, the humanitarian situation will be increasing.”

Concerns over the deterioration of the economic situation in Afghanistan have been heightened by the recent decision of Biden about the Afghanistan assets which are in US banks.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal said in a report that Biden’s executive order to distribute $7 billion of Afghan assets to the families of 9/11 victims is another blow to the country’s declining economy.

KABUL, 21 February 2022, (TON): A number of Afghan university professors have condemned the US president’s decision regarding the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves.

They called on the international community and international organizations to speak out against the unjust decision.

President Joe Biden has moved to freeze about $7bn in assets held in US financial institutions by the Afghan central bank in the wake of the Taliban takeover, as he vowed to direct $3.5bn to humanitarian aid and preserve the rest for families of victims of the September 11 terror attacks.

In an executive order signed on Feb 11, Biden directed all property and interests in property of the Afghan central bank in the US to be blocked and transferred to an account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, effectively cutting off the Taliban’s access to the US financial system.

Afghan university lecturers in a meeting today called the US President’s decision a completely irresponsible and unjust act and condemned it.

Najibullah Amarkhel, deputy chancellor of Kabul Medical University, told the meeting that the US decision was weak and full of hatred.

DHAKA, 21 February 2022, (TON): The United Nations Development Program and Brac have partnered and signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance the effectiveness of poverty eradication and make these efforts more impactful to ensure inclusive growth for Bangladesh.

Sudipto Mukerjee, resident representative of UNDP Bangladesh, and Asif Saleh, executive director of Brac signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organizations at the UNDP office in the capital.

Under this partnership, both organizations will work together to enhance the effectiveness of the poverty eradication effort for fostering inclusive growth in Bangladesh.

According to UNDP “evidence-based policies and programs will be designed, and a platform will be created to further strengthen the social protection systems in Bangladesh to make sure no one is left behind.”

While signing the ceremony, Sudipto Mukerjee said the partnership will assist the government of Bangladesh to effectively identify and transfer social protection benefits to people living in extreme poverty.

DHAKA, 21 February 2022, (TON): Foreign Minister Dr. AK Abdul Momen has said that Bangladesh and the US have the opportunity to work together to realize a number of long-term, ambitious initiatives to showcase effective climate action.

A foreign ministry press release said here today “he made the remark following a bilateral meeting with the US President’s Special Envoy on Climate John Kerry on the sideline of the Munich Security Conference.”

During the meeting, the two leaders discussed a wide range of bilateral cooperation issues as well as also talked about the recent sanctions imposed by the US on the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and some of its former and current officials.

They discussed the possibility of growth in renewable energy in Bangladesh in line with the country’s requirement to generate an additional 4,000 MW of energy from renewable sources.

Dr. Momen urged the G7 to support Bangladesh and other climate vulnerable countries with cost-effective technologies for transition to green energy.

Kerry described the potential of nuclear modular plants that are currently being tested in the US.

KABUL, 20 February 2022, (TON): The Afghan ambassador in Washington has stepped down from her post, a senior official at the embassy said, calling the new restrictions imposed by the US Department of State on the embassy the reason for her resignation.

Afghan deputy ambassador Abdul Hadi Nijrabi told TOLOnews that the US State Department had decided to stop political and diplomatic activities of Afghanistan in the US. He said the State Department in a letter to the Afghanistan embassy in Washington demanded the diplomatic activities be halted.

He said “the letter sent by the US State Department to the embassy said only the ambassador is allowed to continue work from home, but not on political and diplomatic activities. The rest of the diplomats cannot work anymore.”

Former diplomats and political analysts believe that the end of Afghanistan’s diplomatic missions abroad will marginalize the current Afghan government around the world.

“The closure of the Afghanistan embassies will create a distance between the Afghan government and the world. This will makes a big problem for the new government which and will play a negative role in their recognition,” said Noorullah Raghi, former diplomat.