Tag: U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM)

The Taliban has received substantial funding from the United States due to inadequate vetting by the State Department under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. According to a report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), at least $239 million has potentially benefited extremist groups since the Biden-Harris regime’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

The funds, distributed by the State Department‘s Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) and International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) divisions, were intended for development projects aligning with American foreign policy and national security goals in Afghanistan. However, the investigation found that these divisions failed to conduct proper vetting on at least 29 grants, as mandated by their own counterterrorism partner vetting requirements.

The vetting system is designed to ensure that prospective awardees possess ethical business practices and to assess whether the funding could benefit terrorists or their affiliates. SIGAR’s report notes that the State Department did not adhere to these protocols.

According to the report, in multiple instances DRL and INL failed to maintain compliance with document retention and vetting requirements. DRL did not properly screen the recipients of seven awards amounting to approximately $12 million. INL was unable to provide supporting documentation for 19 out of 22 awards, totaling about $295 million, making it impossible to verify compliance with the vetting requirements.

The Taliban has also profited from fraudulent non-governmental organizations (NGOs) absorbing funds managed through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM). Moreover, U.S. contributions to the United Nations for Afghanistan, amounting to $1.6 billion, likely also benefited the Taliban due to inadequate reporting requirements.