Leading foreign policy Republicans on Tuesday issued a rare criticism of US President Donald Trump's purge of the diplomatic corps, urging the administration not to dismantle the State Department agencies charged with assisting Washington's former Afghan partners to resettle in America.
Congressman Mike Lawler, who chairs the House Middle East subcommittee, along with former foreign affairs committee chairman Mike McCaul and Congressman Richard Hudson, sent a letter to President Trump urging him not to dismantle the State Department’s Office of the Co-ordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (Care), and its Enduring Welcome programme.
“Such a decision would abandon over 200,000 wartime allies and have lasting consequences for America's global credibility, military operations, and veterans,” the Republicans wrote, describing the potential move as “an urgent national security matter.”
The Enduring Welcome programme was established for Washington to resettle in the US “tens of thousands of brave Afghan allies at risk who worked closely with us diplomats, aid workers and military personnel” over the course of the Afghan war.
“These are not random applicants or illegal migrants … every individual in the Enduring Welcome pipeline served alongside American forces, risked their lives for our mission and was promised a path to safety,” the letter continued.
Threats of programme closure under the Trump administration come after a month of sweeping executive actions aimed at US federal workers and a halt on foreign aid – causing chaos in US diplomatic and humanitarian missions around the globe.
The Republican signatories have been among those on Capitol Hill to lead investigations into the Biden administration's chaotic withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in 2021.
Mr McCaul led a Congressional probe into the withdrawal that saw the Taliban seize Kabul and a deadly attack at the city's airport that killed at least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 American troops.
Republicans have largely fallen in line with Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency purge of federal programmes and workers. The letter expressing “concern” marks a rare moment of criticism from Mr Trump's fellow party members.
His cut to US foreign assistance has already stressed operations in Afghanistan, including threats of depriving more than nine million people of health and protection services, with hundreds of mobile health teams being discontinued.
Honeymoonish
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The%20specs
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Name: Colm McLoughlin
Country: Galway, Ireland
Job: Executive vice chairman and chief executive of Dubai Duty Free
Favourite golf course: Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club
Favourite part of Dubai: Palm Jumeirah
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
AUSTRALIA SQUADS
ODI squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Twenty20 squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Ant-Man%20and%20the%20Wasp%3A%20Quantumania
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Company%20Profile
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LIKELY TEAMS
South Africa
Faf du Plessis (captain), Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Lungi Ngidi.
India (from)
Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wkt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
if you go
The flights
Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.
The hotel
Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.
The tour
Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg
Switching%20sides
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
