- (AFP) - The United States is to announce that it will
waive sanctions imposed against Afghanistan for the production of illicit
narcotics in a move aimed at supporting the interim government in
Kabul.
-
- Afghanistan and Haiti are to be the only countries to
receive waivers when the State Department releases its annual review of
nations engaged in the illicit drug trade, the official told AFP on
Monday.
-
- The sanctions, including an end to most US aid and a
block on borrowing from multilateral organizations, are to be waived for
US "national security interests," the official said.
-
- Sanctions against other nations that produce narcotics
or are major transit sites for illegal drugs, such as Myanmar, will remain
in place, the official said.
-
- The waiver for Afghanistan is part of Washington's effort
to reward and support the Afghan interim government led by Hamid Karzai
that took power after the Taliban were ousted in the US-led war on
terrorism.
-
- In 2001, for the second year in a row, Afghanistan and
Myanmar, the world's top opium and heroin producers, were the only
countries
out of 24 on the list to face continued US sanctions for not cooperating
with the United States on counter-narcotics programs.
-
- The 2002 list is to be released by Assistant Secretary
of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Rand
Beers at a news conference on Monday.
-
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