Taliban delegation meets EU staff in Brussels over Afghan returns
The closed-door Brussels meeting drew criticism from rights groups as EU governments seek more deportations to Afghanistan.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
4 min read
A Taliban delegation held closed-door talks with European Union staff in Brussels on Tuesday, in a meeting centered on consular services and the return of Afghans from Europe, Taliban foreign ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi said. The discussions matter because several EU governments are pushing to send back more Afghans whose asylum claims fail or who are convicted of crimes, while the bloc still does not recognize Taliban rule.
Balkhi, who led a five-member Taliban delegation, described the visit as the first time representatives of the Islamic Emirate had met EU and member-state officials in Brussels. He said the talks covered broader consular services for Afghans in the EU, confidence-building steps, a possible consular presence and what he called a dignified return process.
The meeting took place at an undisclosed location in the Belgian capital, according to The Associated Press. Brussels hosts the EU institutions and NATO, but the talks were not held in Belgian or EU official buildings because neither Belgium nor the EU recognizes the Taliban government, AP reported.
Rights groups object
Human rights groups criticized the meeting, saying cooperation on returns could put Afghans at risk and weaken Europe’s stated position on Taliban abuses. Since taking power in 2021 after the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces, Taliban authorities have imposed severe limits on rights, especially those of women and girls, according to rights groups cited by AP.
Fereshta Abbasi, a Human Rights Watch researcher, said any contact with the Taliban should focus on rights protections and accountability rather than deportations. She said EU governments were damaging their credibility by condemning Taliban abuses while also working with the group on forced returns.
Malala Yousafzai, the Afghan activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, wrote on X on Monday that she was shaken by the EU’s willingness to talk with the Taliban. She said European engagement with the group should begin and end with the rights of Afghan women and girls.
Amnesty International’s Eve Geddie also opposed efforts to deport people to Afghanistan, saying the country had become more dangerous since the 2021 evacuation scenes from Kabul, including flights carrying EU staff.
EU says contacts are technical
European Commission spokesperson Markus Lammert said the meeting followed requests from EU member states for the Commission to coordinate technical contacts on returns. He said the bloc’s initial focus is on people convicted of crimes and those considered security threats by authorities.
“These are technical-level contacts,” Lammert said, according to AP. “This does not mean recognition.” He also said some EU member states were permitted to meet the Taliban during the talks, though he did not identify them.
The Commission has declined repeated AP requests for more information about the meeting. AP reported that the Commission sent a mission to Kabul in January for the first meeting between the two sides and continues to keep staff in Afghanistan.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said Belgium does not recognize the Taliban but would meet EU requests to issue visas. He said allowing a meeting under Belgium’s role as host of EU institutions did not confer recognition or legitimacy and was not an invitation from the Belgian government.
Members of the Taliban delegation received visas after security checks, AP reported. The documents were valid only for 24 hours in Belgium and did not allow travel elsewhere in the Schengen area.
Pressure to increase returns
Afghans are among the largest groups seeking asylum in the EU, according to AP. In October, 20 of the EU’s 27 member states signed a letter calling for tougher migration policies, including more deportations.
Belgian Migration Minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt, who helped draft that letter, said at the time that the EU needed a firm joint approach to migration and security. She said only 2% of 22,870 Afghans ordered to return from the EU had done so.
Afghanistan is already absorbing large numbers of returnees. AP reported that about 3 million Afghans have returned from Pakistan and Iran in the past year, most through forced repatriation, adding to food and economic crises worsened by sanctions.
The Taliban government, facing isolation and economic strain, wants humanitarian aid and a reduction in its political and financial isolation, AP reported.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.