US imposes restriction on importing Afghan cultural items

US State Department said on Tuesday that the US had restricted import of cultural and historical items from Afghanistan with an aim to prevent "terrorists" from profiting. Experts have reportedly voiced fears about unintended consequences of such a measure.

The decree, which was implemented on an "emergency" basis and took effect on Friday, includes restrictions on bringing ceramics, paintings, glass, ivory, ancient textiles, tiles and wood pieces, among others into the country, according to a government list.

The restrictions "are intended to prevent illicitly trafficked materials from entering the US art market, thus reducing the incentive for pillage of Afghanistan's cultural heritage and combatting profit from the sale of these cultural objects by terrorists and criminal organizations," the State Department said.

But they come after an April 2021 request from the US-backed Afghan government -- which fell to the Taliban in August.

"Can the State Department act based on a 'request' of a government that no longer exists?" ancient coin collector and advocate Peter Tompa asked in a post on his blog the Cultural Property Observer.

"The real question is how these restrictions are going to be enforced and if any material that may be seized will be repatriated to the Taliban once diplomatic relations (with the United States) are restored," he wrote.

Taliban 'investigating' looting

Restricted archaeological material dates from the year 50,000 BC through 1747, and restricted cultural material includes items from the ninth century through 1920, the government said.

The new regulations could create logistics issues for collectors or curators who already have items on their way to the United States as auction houses prepare to sell pieces during Asia Week New York next month, art publication The Art Newspaper pointed out.