A senior Russian official has accused Western governments of plundering the national wealth of vulnerable countries, including Afghanistan.
Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, in an interview with the newspaper Kommersant, claimed that NATO countries are planning to significantly increase military spending by cutting social services, raising taxes, and increasing debt.
To minimize public backlash, he alleged, the European Union will use Russia’s frozen assets.Shoigu stated, “Stealing and misappropriating others’ money has become a common practice for the West.
This applies, for example, to the funds of Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan.”Following the return of the Islamic Emirate to power in 2021, the United States froze over $9.5 billion in assets of Da Afghanistan Bank. In 2022, $3.5 billion of these funds were transferred to a trust fund in Switzerland to support Afghanistan’s economic and humanitarian needs.
However, another $3.5 billion remains frozen in U.S. banks, while over $2 billion is held in banks in Europe and the United Arab Emirates, inaccessible to Afghanistan’s current government.
Shoigu’s remarks highlight ongoing geopolitical tensions, with the issue of frozen assets becoming a contentious point in international relations. He described the West’s actions as “blatant theft,” framing them as part of a broader strategy to exploit the resources of weaker nations
