In January, U.S. President Donald Trump cut off funding to organizations that assist refugees in resettling in the United States and suspended programs that purchase flights for those individuals. Hundreds who were granted permission to visit the United States had visas but few means of transportation. They had little assistance when they got there, and their predicament has gotten worse even if they were able to purchase a flight.
The Trump administration’s suspension of the refugee program left about 200,000 Afghans who were left behind during the U.S. withdrawal in 2021 in a state of uncertainty. Many of them may never be permitted to enter the United States, even though they fought alongside the country and were granted refugee visas last year. Because President Trump has withdrawn support for those already on American soil in recent days, those who made it there must endure extreme hardships.
Assisting Afghans After the Withdrawal: Neither Here, Nor There
Despite years of collaborating with American officials, troops, and non-profit organizations in Afghanistan, Afghan refugees told the BBC they feel the US has “turned its back” on them. They are concerned that using their true names could endanger their cases or endanger their families, so we are not using them.
Taliban government spokesperson Suhail Shaheen told the BBC that all Afghans can “live in the country without any fear” and that those who collaborated with foreign forces will be granted amnesty. These refugees, he says, are “economic migrants.”
However, a 2023 UN report questioned the Taliban government’s promises. Despite a general amnesty, it was discovered that hundreds of former military personnel and government officials had allegedly been killed.
Meanwhile, in some of the areas where many Afghans have temporarily settled, the situation has gotten more precarious. After hosting millions of refugees, Pakistan has expelled Afghans in recent years. According to Andrew Sullivan, executive director of the religious resettlement aid group No One Left Behind, an agreement that designated Albania as a waystation for Afghans expires in March.
The worry that the Trump administration might impose a travel ban that would prevent all access from Afghanistan looms over all of this. Trump instructed key Cabinet members to submit a report within 60 days identifying nations with inadequate vetting that would “warrant a partial or full suspension” of travelers from those nations to the United States, according to an executive order he signed on Inauguration Day.
Afghanistan Now
International legitimacy has been elusive for the Kabul regime since it came to power in August 2021. The Taliban call their government the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which is a unique state. Beyond their general claims of establishing a Shariah system—an abstract concept in and of itself—the senior Taliban leaders have no clear vision for statecraft. The administrative structure of the former Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, which it opposed and deemed “un-Islamic,” has been adopted by the Emirate.
Taliban leaders portray their hold on power as proof of effective governance that merits official recognition on a global scale.
Taliban leaders disagree on important policy issues, such as the harsh limitations placed on women’s education and social roles. The ICC prosecutor is pressuring the Taliban’s top leader to be arrested for discriminating against women and girls. There is also evidence of a widening divide between the Taliban’s leaders in Kabul and those led by Haibatullah Akhundzada, the amir of Kandahar.
Since its military withdrawal, the United States has continued to be the largest donor of aid, contributing $3.63 billion between October 2021 and December 2024. Afghanistan’s complex humanitarian problems will surely worsen if Trump’s “America First” policies result in a permanent suspension of aid.
In 2025, almost 23 million people, or more than half of Afghanistan’s estimated 40 million inhabitants, are expected to need humanitarian aid. Policymakers in the US and the West should do everything in their power to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a pariah nation by disengaging from it.
