The United States and the West have left this country in a corner, as the Ukraine crisis escalates into a war | Afghanistan | Ukraine

On August 30, 2021, the last US C-17 transport plane took off from Kabul International Airport, marking the end of the 20-year war in Afghanistan with the hasty withdrawal of US troops. On June 30th, the US State Department released a post assessment report on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, criticizing the handling of the withdrawal of the US military and its allies from Afghanistan.

Not long ago, the interim government of Afghanistan announced that August 31st will be designated as the "Memorial Day for the Evacuation of Foreign Troops", which will become a national public holiday in Afghanistan. "This holiday reminds me of the pain and suffering that the US military has brought us," Kabul resident Amanula told Global magazine reporters. The Hindustan Times stated on its social media account that the interim government's move is a mockery of the military power of the Biden administration.

After the withdrawal of the US military, Afghanistan did not achieve impressive economic development results due to factors such as US sanctions, but instead fell deeply into a serious humanitarian crisis.

"Afghanistan is currently in a critical period of transition from chaos to governance, and requires sustained investment and attention from the international community and the United Nations," said Zhang Jun, the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, in his speech at the open meeting of the Security Council on Afghanistan on June 21.

On May 29, children walk on muddy streets after rain in Sayedabad, Maidan City, Wardakh Province, Afghanistan Xinhua News Agency/AFP

1

Weak economic development

Earlier this year, Yumiko Takashima, the acting representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan, told the media that 98% of Afghan people live below the poverty line recognized by the United Nations, and more than half of the population needs emergency assistance. According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 70% of Afghans cannot guarantee two meals a day, and other essential items are also very scarce.

Faced with the current humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, the United States, which has caused countless human tragedies in Afghanistan, cannot shirk its responsibility. US President Biden signed an executive order on February 11 last year, planning to use half of the frozen $7 billion assets of the Central Bank of America to compensate victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Afghan public opinion generally believes that the US government's act of plundering has led to a shortage of foreign exchange and rising prices in Afghanistan.

Compared to humanitarian crises, the current interim government in Afghanistan is facing a more severe challenge of sustained economic recession due to weak development. The severe shortage of infrastructure, power supply, professional talents, and weak basic industry make Afghanistan lack its own "hematopoietic capacity" for development.

The US military presence in Afghanistan for 20 years has not helped Afghanistan establish a decent economic and industrial system. Even in the capital Kabul, there is no decent urban public transportation system, municipal water supply system, and heating system. Insufficient power supply leads to long power outages every day, and a large number of people live in self built adobe houses on the mountains

The development status of other cities is even less optimistic. A journalist from Global magazine went on a business trip from Kabul to another province and saw that most of the road sections were severely damaged and lacked maintenance. In rural areas where the majority of the population in Afghanistan resides, relying on the weather for a living is the norm, and a large number of farmers have insufficient harvests and lack of food.

In the eastern province of Khost in Afghanistan, Mohammad Hassan Khan, a local farmer with about 60 acres of land, struggled with no irrigation channels and had to rely on helping others carry heavy loads in the city for a living. His daily income was only enough to purchase the cheapest waste animal fat for daily cooking. In Bamiyan Province in central Afghanistan, resident Turyali told reporters, "All the fertilizers used for farming rely on imports, and the prices are too high to afford."

2

The security situation is still not optimistic

In terms of security, terrorist attacks by extremist organizations such as the Islamic State have occurred frequently, and Afghan interim government security personnel have clashed with anti-government forces. In Kabul alone, an average of one explosion attack or firefight occurs every two to three days. Zahir Bezad, an economics researcher at the Afghan National Vocational and Technical College, believes that although the interim government has achieved overall national stability, it is very difficult to eradicate extremist and terrorist organizations.

Taliban security personnel guard near the scene of the bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 27, Xinhua News Agency/AP

On June 27, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan released a report stating that from the Taliban's return to power on August 15, 2021, to May 30 this year, a total of 3774 civilians in Afghanistan were killed or injured in bombing attacks, with three-quarters of the attacks occurring in densely populated areas, including places of worship, schools, and markets.

The website of the Russian International Affairs Commission recently published an article pointing out that the "Vilayat Khorasan" organization affiliated with the extremist organization "Islamic State" is constantly growing, and its targets in recent months include diplomatic missions working normally in Kabul, using "forced freezing" tools for bilateral contacts between Ata and other countries.

On September 5th last year, an explosion occurred near the Russian Embassy in Afghanistan in Kabul. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that two staff members of the Russian diplomatic mission were killed in the explosion. On December 2 of the same year, a shooting occurred near the Pakistani Embassy in Afghanistan, in which a Pakistani security guard was injured.

Analysts believe that ethnic minorities, Shia followers, foreigners and other groups in Afghanistan have become potential targets of terrorist organizations within the country.

Ironically, the United States invaded Afghanistan under the pretext of "counter-terrorism", but the more anti terrorist it became, the more terrifying it became. Over the past 20 years, the United States has defined terrorist organizations according to its own needs and selectively counterterrorism to achieve its geopolitical goals. This has led to an increase in the number of terrorist organizations in Afghanistan from single digits 20 years ago to over 20 today, not only deeply affecting the Afghan people, but also endangering the security of neighboring countries.

Professor Abuzar Hapalwa Zazai of Kabul University in Afghanistan said, "As long as its own interests require, the United States can include or remove any organization from the list of terrorist organizations." The actions of the United States out of its own interests have left the Afghan people under the shadow of terrorist attacks to this day.

3

Drug control has a heavy responsibility and a long way to go

As a former heavily affected area of drug abuse, Afghanistan's achievements in drug control have attracted international attention. On April 3rd last year, the interim government of Afghanistan officially issued anti drug laws. The highest leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Ahongzada, has demanded in a decree that Ata take measures nationwide to ban the production, trade of drugs, and cultivation of poppy. Afterwards, local media reported almost daily about Ata security personnel destroying poppy fields and arresting drug traffickers.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime released a report in June this year stating that Afghanistan still has nearly 4 million drug users, accounting for nearly 10% of the total population.

The United States bears an inescapable responsibility in the drug problem in Afghanistan. The United States has long allowed or even encouraged the proliferation of drugs in Afghanistan. At the turn of the century, the Afghan government comprehensively banned drugs. In 2001, Afghanistan's opium production was only 185 tons, but after the US invasion of Afghanistan that same year, Afghanistan's drug production and trade immediately rebounded.

The years of war since the US invasion of Afghanistan have gradually made many Afghan people who cannot bear the pain of war addicted to drugs. The reporter once visited Ado's drug rehabilitation center, where many people receiving treatment grew up in the era of intense war, attempting to escape the harsh reality of hell by anesthetizing themselves.

"I used to be a truck driver transporting supplies for the US military. Every time I drove outside, I encountered explosions and rocket attacks, and every minute of the road was dangerous," Shah Aga, who was receiving treatment at a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul, told Global magazine reporters. "In order to overcome fear and escape the reality of danger, almost all of our drivers became addicted to drugs."

four

Marginalized by the Western United States

Nowadays, the Afghan issue seems to have been quietly marginalized by the United States and the West. Some analysts believe that since the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, Afghanistan, the former great power's arena of competition, has been reduced from an "imperial graveyard" to a "forgotten corner". Last year, the website of the French magazine "Viewpoint" published an article stating that Western countries have shifted their focus away from Afghanistan and do not want to be associated with a country that has invested so much in them over the past 20 years.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, has stated that when the world's attention is focused on Ukraine, the international community should not forget the severe humanitarian situation in Afghanistan. In today's Afghanistan, foreign investment has dried up and the international community's financial assistance has significantly decreased.

Not only that, the escalating crisis in Ukraine has also brought about food and energy supply issues that have made Afghanistan even more vulnerable. According to a press release jointly released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Food Programme of the United Nations, the Ukrainian crisis will continue to put pressure on food and fuel prices in Afghanistan, including wheat.

Analysts point out that the United States undoubtedly plays a destructive role in both Afghanistan and the current crisis in Ukraine. 20 years ago, under the guise of "democracy", the United States intervened in its own domestic affairs and even launched the war in Afghanistan for its own selfish interests. Nowadays, the United States, which focuses on so-called "great power competition," ignores the suffering of the Afghan people and places Afghanistan in a "forgotten corner" for its own selfish interests. This approach blatantly reflects the selfish nature and hegemonic essence of the United States.

The Afghan themed novel "Echoes of Mountains" states that "there are a thousand tragedies per square mile in this land of Afghanistan.". The US military left the mess to Afghanistan and left it behind. In this war-torn land, the future development path of the Afghan people is still long.

five

The Chinese plan has received widespread attention

It is worth mentioning that on May 6th local time, the fifth trilateral dialogue between foreign ministers of China, Afghanistan, and Pakistan was successfully held in Islamabad, Pakistan. This is a dialogue held by the foreign ministers of the three countries after significant changes in the situation in Afghanistan in August 2021. It has played an important driving role in continuing the good neighborly friendship and practical cooperation between China, Afghanistan, and Pakistan under the new situation, assisting in the political resolution of the Afghan issue, and guiding the international community's efforts to stabilize and assist Afghanistan.

"Under the strong promotion of the Chinese side, the trilateral foreign ministers' dialogue issued a joint statement, reaching a consensus on further deepening political, development, and security cooperation among the three countries, and agreeing on a path." Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang Wenbin, said that this is the first multilateral consensus document issued with the participation of the interim government of Afghanistan, and also the first written commitment made by the Afghan Taliban to not allow forces such as the "East Iran Movement" to engage in terrorist acts and activities, which is of great significance for the development of China Afghanistan relations and the promotion of regional counter-terrorism and security cooperation.

On June 21st, Zhang Jun, the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, spoke at the open meeting of the Security Council on the Afghanistan issue, stating that engaging with the interim government of Afghanistan with a pragmatic attitude is the fundamental way to enhance understanding and mutual trust, and address related concerns. Afghanistan's neighboring and neighboring countries have always been at the forefront in this regard. Overall, the international community has a consensus on establishing a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Afghanistan. They all look forward to dialogue and engagement to help the Afghan interim government build an open and inclusive political structure through inclusive and moderate governance. China hopes that the interim government of Afghanistan will make active efforts in the direction that is in line with the interests of the Afghan people and the expectations of the international community, to achieve independent and effective national governance, including safeguarding women's rights to education and employment.