KABUL – Washington's unprecedented threat to cut $1 billion in Afghanistan funding — a response to the refusal of rivals in Kabul to work together to advance peace — comes at a time when the impoverished nation risks being overwhelmed by the coronavirus pandemic.
There was no immediate response Tuesday from President Ashraf Ghani and his bitter rival, former Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, a day after U.S.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called them out in a harsh statement. Pompeo on Monday, in unannounced but urgent visit to Kabul, held inconclusive meetings with Ghani and Abdullah, then flew to the Gulf to meet with a leader of the Taliban, the Afghan insurgents who last month signed a peace deal with the U.S.