The White House continued to defend a careful line on the Taliban after cooperating with them during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying Thursday that sanctions relief for the new regime was not under consideration.
Critics panned the Biden administration for relying on the Taliban while evacuating Americans and Afghan partners before the Tuesday deadline. They also said President Joe Biden was trusting the Taliban’s good graces to protect Americans and allied Afghans left behind in the war-torn country.
The White House has persistently tried to push back on that line. “No one is discussing the reduction of sanctions on the Taliban,” press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at Thursday’s briefing. “We are going to judge the Taliban by their actions. … Now, at the same time, we want to make sure there is assistance to the Afghan people.”
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The White House has repeatedly cited aid as a sign of America’s continued commitment to Afghanistan post-withdrawal while also saying access to global markets remains a major point of leverage against the Taliban.
Psaki has also said from the podium at the White House that while the Biden administration has had to deal with the Taliban because they control most of Afghanistan, that does not mean they have revised their view of the Islamic extremists who ruled the country before the post-9/11 American invasion in 2001.
“That doesn’t mean we think the Taliban are good actors,” Psaki said Wednesday. “We don’t.”
Biden himself has frequently noted that former President Donald Trump’s administration negotiated a peace deal with the Taliban that promised U.S. withdrawal in exchange for a cessation of attacks on Western troops.
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“There are few countries that wanted us to stay in Afghanistan more than China and Russia because it would tie up our own resources,” Psaki said on Thursday. “The world is united in what they expect the Taliban to do.”
Asked about reports that the Taliban is already reneging on some of its commitments, Psaki responded, “I don’t have any confirmation.”
