WASHINGTON: The Biden administration is exploring having three Central Asian countries temporarily take in thousands of Afghans who worked with the US forces and face threats from the Taliban now that the US troops are withdrawing after 20 years, three sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. They said Washington was in talks with Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan about letting in the at-risk Afghan citizens. Two of the sources were US officials and all requested anonymity, reports a UK-based international wire agency.
The three sources said an agreement did not appear imminent with any of the countries.
The decision to move at-risk Afghans risks inflaming a sense of crisis in Afghanistan, as fighting between US-backed Afghan forces and the Taliban has surged in recent weeks, with the militants gaining control of large amounts of territory. Thousands of Afghan translators and interpreters face threats from the Taliban after working for two decades alongside the US military. The United States announced plans last week to seek refuge for thousands of vulnerable Afghans in countries outside Afghanistan so their US visa applications could be processed from safety, but Washington did not specify where they would go.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki provided no further details on Friday.
