IntelBrief: Sanctions on Taliban Compound Afghanistan’s Humanitarian Difficulties

Bottom Line Up Front 

• The Biden administration is trying to work around longstanding terrorism-related sanctions to facilitate the delivery of aid to the struggling Afghan population.
• Despite the issuance of sanctions exceptions, Taliban rule in Afghanistan will cause many global banks to refuse to finance commercial transactions with the Afghan private sector. 
• Whether U.S. sanctions on the Taliban are lifted outright will depend on the Taliban’s denial of safe haven and sanctuary to global jihadist groups, as well as its human rights practices. 
• The potential for U.S. and international terrorism-related sanctions to complicate humanitarian aid and normal economic interactions is not unique to Afghanistan.