WASHINGTON, May 21 (KUNA) -- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the United States was reviewing whether to designate the Taliban movement as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO).
Rubio was testifying before the House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs on the FY26 Department of State Budget Request on Capitol Hill.
Asked by Representative Tim Burchett, a Tennessee Republican, whether the US would classify the ruling movement in Afghanistan as a FTO, he said, "I believe that classification is now, once again, under review." The Taliban has been designated as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) under Executive Order 13224 by the US government. While not formally designated as a FTO, the US considers the Taliban a terrorist group due to their history of engaging in terrorism and posing a threat to US security. (end) rsr.gb