Germany announced on Thursday that if the Taliban were to gain control in Afghanistan, it would stop delivering financial aid to the country.
Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told German network ZDF that the Taliban understand that Afghanistan cannot exist without international assistance.
“We will not send another dollar to this country (Afghanistan) if the Taliban seize total authority, impose Sharia law, and establish a caliphate,” Maas stated.
Germany gives 430 million euros ($504 million) in aid to Afghanistan each year, making it one of the country’s largest donors.
The Taliban have taken control of wide swaths of the country since international soldiers began withdrawing from Afghanistan in May.
The Taliban recently took control of Ghazni, the province capital 150 kilometres from Kabul.
When challenged about the progress made by Taliban insurgents in the country, Maas came back to the US decision to withdraw from the country.
“This meant that all NATO forces had to leave the nation as well,” Maas explained, “since, without American capabilities, no country can securely commit its soldiers there.”
The German government pondered a lengthier deployment in Afghanistan, but “could not act outside of NATO,” according to Maas.
Until June, German soldiers had been stationed in Afghanistan as part of a NATO mission for nearly two decades.
