Bill To Deny Taliban Access To US Financial Aid Submitted To Congress

Tim Burchett, a US congressman and supporter of the National Resistance Front, said that he has submitted a draft bill to the House of Representatives that would ensure that US money does not reach the Taliban.

Burchett had previously warned of a terrorist attack on the United States using financial aid to the Taliban.

"Today, I introduced the 'No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act' to ensure US tax dollars are not funding the Taliban," the lawmaker wrote on social media platform X on Thursday.

If the bill passes, Burchett said, the US State Department would be required to create and implement a policy to counter any foreign aid to the Taliban.

Second, the bill would require the US government to report on the cash assistance programme in Afghanistan and how Washington is preventing the Taliban from accessing the aid.

In the third step, the bill calls for reporting from the Afghanistan Trust Fund and the Taliban-controlled Central Bank.

The congressman said that it was strange that "bills like this" should be introduced in the House to prevent aid to terrorists.

Burchett had previously warned against the use of US financial aid to Afghanistan by terrorist groups, saying that "the next terrorist attack will be funded by the American people".

He made the remarks on Tuesday in response to a question from Trump adviser Elon Musk about whether American taxpayer money would end up in the hands of the Taliban.

Burchett wrote on X, "Yes, we do. The next terrorist attack (in the United States) will be 100 percent funded by the American taxpayer."

Earlier, he had sent a letter to Donald Trump, who will officially begin his term as president of the United States in 10 days, calling for an immediate halt to the transfer of cash to the Taliban.

Burchett had said that the United States should not fund its enemies abroad. "Paying $40 million a week to our enemies is an insult to those who have served in the military," he said.

The United States has provided more than $2 billion in aid to organisations in Afghanistan over the past three years. The US State Department says that the aid is only for relief and charity programmes and for ordinary Afghans who are struggling with famine, hunger and food shortages.

Critics say that the aid is turning the wheel of the Taliban government's machine and are calling for it to stop. However, the United Nations and other humanitarian organisations consider the suspension of aid in Afghanistan catastrophic and call for increased financial assistance from donor countries.