US yet to approve any help following Afghanistan earthquake, sources say

6/9/2025 12:37

Nearly a week after an earthquake killed more than 2,200 people in Afghanistan and left tens of thousands homeless, the United States has not taken the first step to authorize emergency aid, and it was unclear if it plans to help at all, two former senior U.S. officials and a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.



The lack of response by Washington to one of Afghanistan's deadliest quakes in years underscores how President Donald Trump has forfeited decades of U.S. leadership of global disaster relief with his deep foreign aid cuts and closure of the main U.S. foreign assistance agency, said the source and the former officials. The U.S. Agency for International Development was officially shuttered on Tuesday.



The State Department on Monday extended its "heartfelt condolences" to Afghanistan in an X post.



As of Friday, however, the State Department had not approved a declaration of humanitarian need, the first step in authorizing U.S. emergency relief, said the former officials, both of whom worked at USAID.



Such a declaration is usually issued within 24 hours of a major disaster.