Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar greets US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Kabul. Afghan Presidential Palace / AFP
Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar greets US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Kabul. Afghan Presidential Palace / AFP
Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar greets US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Kabul. Afghan Presidential Palace / AFP
Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar greets US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Kabul. Afghan Presidential Palace / AFP

The Americas

Antony Blinken visits Afghanistan after US sets troop withdrawal deadline

US secretary of state makes unannounced visit a day after President Joe Biden confirmed all soldiers would leave this year

Bryant Harris
Bryant Harris

April 15, 2021

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul on Thursday, a day after President Joe Biden announced that the US would end its military mission in Afghanistan and withdraw all troops by September 11.

Mr Biden said he had spoken by phone with Mr Ghani prior to his speech on Wednesday.

Despite the looming withdrawal, the Biden administration has vowed to continue security, humanitarian and diplomatic support to Afghanistan.

Mr Blinken’s surprise visit to Kabul was to “affirm the United States’ continued commitment to Afghanistan”, State Department spokesman Ned Price said.

“Secretary Blinken made clear that the United States stands with Afghanistan and its people in support of a peaceful and prosperous future,” Mr Price said.

“Secretary Blinken and President Ghani discussed our shared investment in Afghanistan and the importance of preserving the gains of the last 20 years, especially in building a strong civil society and protecting the rights of women and girls.

“They also discussed counter-terrorism co-operation and our shared commitment to ensure Al Qaeda never regains a foothold in Afghanistan.”

Separately, Mr Blinken also met with the chair of the Afghanistan High Commission for National Reconciliation, Abdullah Abdullah. 
"Secretary Blinken and Dr Abdullah discussed the importance of continuing to work towards a negotiated political settlement and permanent and comprehensive ceasefire," Mr Price said in a readout of the meeting.

"Secretary Blinken reiterated the US commitment to the peace process and that we will use our full diplomatic, economic and humanitarian toolkit to support the future the Afghan people want, including the gains made by Afghan women."

Mr Blinken travelled to Afghanistan after meeting Nato allies in Brussels. The US has about 3,500 troops in Afghanistan fighting alongside its allies as part of a Nato mission that consists of approximately 11,000 forces.

However, Mr Blinken indicated that the Nato mission would end alongside the US mission during a meeting on Wednesday with Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

Under former president Donald Trump, the US last year agreed to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan by May 1, 2021 as part of Qatar-brokered talks with the Taliban, who have criticised Biden for pushing past that deadline.

How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now

Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.

The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.

1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):

a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33

b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.

2. For those who have worked more than five years

c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.

Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.

Habtoor interview
How Tesla’s price correction has hit fund managers

Investing in disruptive technology can be a bumpy ride, as investors in Tesla were reminded on Friday, when its stock dropped 7.5 per cent in early trading to $575.

It recovered slightly but still ended the week 15 per cent lower and is down a third from its all-time high of $883 on January 26. The electric car maker’s market cap fell from $834 billion to about $567bn in that time, a drop of an astonishing $267bn, and a blow for those who bought Tesla stock late.

The collapse also hit fund managers that have gone big on Tesla, notably the UK-based Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust and Cathie Wood’s ARK Innovation ETF.

Tesla is the top holding in both funds, making up a hefty 10 per cent of total assets under management. Both funds have fallen by a quarter in the past month.

Matt Weller, global head of market research at GAIN Capital, recently warned that Tesla founder Elon Musk had “flown a bit too close to the sun”, after getting carried away by investing $1.5bn of the company’s money in Bitcoin.

He also predicted Tesla’s sales could struggle as traditional auto manufacturers ramp up electric car production, destroying its first mover advantage.

AJ Bell’s Russ Mould warns that many investors buy tech stocks when earnings forecasts are rising, almost regardless of valuation. “When it works, it really works. But when it goes wrong, elevated valuations leave little or no downside protection.”

A Tesla correction was probably baked in after last year’s astonishing share price surge, and many investors will see this as an opportunity to load up at a reduced price.

Dramatic swings are to be expected when investing in disruptive technology, as Ms Wood at ARK makes clear.

Every week, she sends subscribers a commentary listing “stocks in our strategies that have appreciated or dropped more than 15 per cent in a day” during the week.

Her latest commentary, issued on Friday, showed seven stocks displaying extreme volatility, led by ExOne, a leader in binder jetting 3D printing technology. It jumped 24 per cent, boosted by news that fellow 3D printing specialist Stratasys had beaten fourth-quarter revenues and earnings expectations, seen as good news for the sector.

By contrast, computational drug and material discovery company Schrödinger fell 27 per cent after quarterly and full-year results showed its core software sales and drug development pipeline slowing.

Despite that setback, Ms Wood remains positive, arguing that its “medicinal chemistry platform offers a powerful and unique view into chemical space”.

In her weekly video view, she remains bullish, stating that: “We are on the right side of change, and disruptive innovation is going to deliver exponential growth trajectories for many of our companies, in fact, most of them.”

Ms Wood remains committed to Tesla as she expects global electric car sales to compound at an average annual rate of 82 per cent for the next five years.

She said these are so “enormous that some people find them unbelievable”, and argues that this scepticism, especially among institutional investors, “festers” and creates a great opportunity for ARK.

Only you can decide whether you are a believer or a festering sceptic. If it’s the former, then buckle up.

Central AsiaAfghanistan