Pakistan warned the international community on Sunday of "grave consequences" if Afghanistan's economic collapse continued, urging world leaders to find ways to interact with the country's Taliban leaders to help avoid a humanitarian disaster.

Speaking at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation conference in Islamabad on the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said, "As Afghanistan's neighbors, we are affected by this humanitarian crisis, and we cannot turn a blind eye to the economic collapse there," noting that "the political scene It has changed in Afghanistan since August, but the suffering of Afghans has not changed."

"We cannot ignore the danger of complete economic meltdown," he told the gathering, which also included Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi alongside delegates from the United States, China, Russia, the European Union, and the UN.

The meeting is the biggest major conference on Afghanistan since the US-backed government fell in August and the Taliban returned to power.

Pakistan lends a hand

Pakistan announced its commitment to providing $30 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan in light of the deteriorating humanitarian situation since the Taliban took control of the country last August.

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Pakistani FM announced that Pakistan is committed to providing $30 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

The international world has sanctioned the new Taliban administration in Kabul, which is still reeling from the collapse of the Afghan military and the Western-backed government in the face of the militants' takeover in mid-August.

In the aftermath of the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan is on the verge of an economic breakdown and humanitarian disaster. The country's assets overseas, principally in the United States, have been blocked, and international funding to the country has stopped.

Griffiths: We must act quickly

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths said that "we must respond and move quickly to confront the situation, otherwise all the people of Afghanistan will face starvation."

He added that "80% of the population of Afghanistan needs help and we must act quickly, otherwise we will witness the collapse of this great country."

World Bank approved the release of $280M in aid to Afghanistan

Earlier, the World Bank approved the release of $280m in aid to Afghanistan, after previously suspending aid. 

The World Bank's board of directors has approved the transfer of $280 million from a frozen trust fund to two assistance organizations to aid Afghanistan in dealing with a looming humanitarian disaster.

After the Taliban seized power as the last US forces withdrew from a 20-year occupation, Afghanistan's 39 million people population is facing a collapsing economy, a winter of food shortages, and rising poverty.

The aid would help, according to Afghan analysts, but there are still many questions, such as how to transfer funds into Afghanistan without exposing any financial institutions implicated in US sanctions.