Undercutting finances of terrorist organisations is effective way to defeat them, says Linda Thomas at UNSC
Aug 19, 2021
New York [US], August 19 : Referring to the continuous ISIS threat in Africa, US Ambassador to United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield on Thursday (local time) said undercutting the financing of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and other terrorist organisations is one of the most effective ways to defeat them.
Speaking at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) briefing on 'Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts', Greenfield said, "this meeting is an important opportunity to discuss the ISIS threat, and actions were all taking to prevent and counter-terrorism. Today I'd like to discuss the current state of the threat posed by ISIS and everything we can do to counter that threat, especially by undercutting its finances."
Citing the Secretary General's assessment on ISIS, Greenfield said "we're deeply worried by the Secretary General's assessment that ISIS continues to expand throughout Africa, especially in various parts of West Africa, and the Sahel, in addition to Central and East Africa."
"To neutralise that expansion, the United States is providing critical counterterrorism assistance to disrupt, degrade and respond to terrorist activity perpetrated by ISIS. Tactical training mentorship and equipment strengthen the capacity of the law enforcement judicial sector, and communities in our partner nations to respond to this growing threat," she said.
Talking about the Taliban, the US Ambassador to UN said, "President Joe Biden stressed we will hold the Taliban accountable for its commitments not to allow any terrorists to threaten the United States or his allies from Afghan soil."
The Taliban took control over Afghanistan on Sunday after entering the presidential palace in Kabul.
Greenfield reiterated that "we must all work together to ensure Afghanistan cannot ever again be a base for terrorism."
"We must continue those efforts, undercutting the financing of ISIS and other terrorist organisations is one of the most effective ways to defeat them," she said, adding that "let us sharpen our focus and strengthen our efforts to go after terrorist finances and financial facilitators, including virtual currencies and new payment methods."
Concluding the statement, she said that "together, we can stop the spread of ISIS in Africa, counter their presence elsewhere and undercut their finances, we can listen closely to civil society, we can address the humanitarian crisis caused by a foreign terrorist."
