UN Afghan mission gets limited extension after US review call

March 16 (Reuters) – The U.N. Security Council voted on Monday to extend the mandate of the UNAMA assistance mission in Afghanistan for a shorter-than-usual three-month period, after Washington called last week for a review of assistance and engagement in the Taliban-ruled country.

The mandate, established in 2002 after the U.S.-led forces overthrew the first Taliban government, has usually been extended annually, although there was a six-month extension in 2021 to look at what changes might be needed after the Taliban returned to power.

China, which is responsible for drafting U.N. resolutions on Afghanistan, said the extension was decided on “considering the desire of some Council members to make appropriate adjustments to UNAMA’s mandate” and to “ensure sufficient time for serious discussions and the adoption of a responsible decision.”

At the Security Council last week, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, noted that the UNAMA budget was the largest of any special U.N. mission in the world and the Council “must consider carefully the funds we collectively provide for this mission’s budget.”

Waltz cited the Taliban’s obstruction of UNAMA’s work, its use of “hostage diplomacy” by detaining innocent Americans, and its “unconscionable” restrictions on women’s rights.

The Security Council Report, an independent think tank that monitors the Council’s activity, said that China initially proposed a one‑year renewal of UNAMA’s mandate, which most Council members supported.

However, a U.N. official said the U.S. would only agree to a three-month technical rollover.

Afghanistan under the Taliban faces one of the world’s most pressing humanitarian crises.

The temporary head of UNAMA, Georgette Gagnon, said last week Afghanistan had “urgent” humanitarian needs and the humanitarian crisis there had worsened due to funding cuts. 

She said humanitarian agencies aimed to assist 17.5 million Afghans in 2026 through an appeal for $1.71 billion, but this was currently only 10% funded.

According to the U.N. World Food Programme, more than 17 million Afghans – or one-third of the population – are facing acute food shortages, including 4.7 million facing emergency levels of hunger. 

The U.S., which has slashed its worldwide aid budget in President Donald Trump’s second term, has maintained sanctions on the Taliban and has declined to approve the return of around $4 billion of Afghan central bank assets from a Swiss-based trust fund.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom, Editing by Bhargav Acharya and Andrei Khalip)