Taliban condemn U.S. move to form Swiss-based trust for Afghan central bank funds

FILE PHOTO: A person holds a bundle of Afghan afghani banknotes at a money exchange market, following banks and markets reopening after the Taliban took over in Kabul, Afghanistan, September 4, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

KABUL (Reuters) - The Taliban's foreign affairs ministry on Thursday condemned the United States' decision to transfer Afghan central bank reserves into a Swiss-based trust, saying it was against international norms.

On Wednesday, Washington announced it would transfer $3.5 billion in previously frozen Afghan central bank assets into a new trust fund that it said would be shielded from the Taliban and used to help stabilise Afghanistan's collapsed economy.