RASC News Agency: Employees of Taliban-controlled government institutions report that their salaries for January-February, remain unpaid. Two independent sources have confirmed that, with the fiscal year nearing its end, the salary disbursement process for February-March, should have already commenced. However, the Taliban have yet to fulfill payments for the previous month. The cause of this delay remains ambiguous. While one employee attributes it to a possible budget deficit, another suggests that the Taliban’s acting Minister of Finance has intentionally postponed salary disbursements.
Under previous administrations, salaries were typically paid ten days before the end of each month. However, since the Taliban’s takeover, delays have become increasingly frequent. The salary for December-January, for instance, was only issued in late January-February. The Taliban have provided no explanation for these persistent delays. Notably, since assuming power, the Taliban have reportedly received between $40 million and $90 million per week from the United States as part of covert arrangements concerning Afghanistan’s security and intelligence matters. While former U.S. President Donald Trump declared an end to these payments following his election victory, reports indicate that financial support to the Taliban has quietly persisted.
Following Trump’s announcement of the suspension of U.S. dollar transfers, the Taliban swiftly halted salary payments to government employees. This move starkly contrasts with the group’s frequent proclamations of economic self-sufficiency, independence, and America’s so-called defeat. Yet, the moment Washington threatens to cut financial flows, the Taliban’s inability to cover even basic governmental expenses becomes glaringly evident.
