The European Union held migration talks with a Taliban delegation in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss the deportation and return of Afghan migrants whose asylum requests have been rejected in the EU [1, 2, 3]. The meeting aimed to address irregular migration flows but the EU stressed it does not amount to formal recognition of the Taliban government [2, 3].
Belgium issued five one-day visas for Taliban officials to attend the talks after conducting a security assessment. These visas were valid only for Belgium and did not allow travel throughout the larger Schengen area [2, 3]. The delegation traveled via Turkey before arriving in Brussels for the meeting held on June 23 [3].
The EU engagement drew sharp criticism from rights groups and Afghan women who viewed the talks as legitimizing a regime known for systematic persecution of women. Since the Taliban regained power in August 2021, they have imposed severe restrictions on women's rights, including banning girls from school after the age of 11 or 12 and excluding women from most public spaces and jobs [1, 2, 3]. The European Parliament passed resolutions condemning Taliban human rights abuses against women and girls earlier this year [1].
Fereshta Abbasi, an Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, said, "Any engagement with the Taliban needs to prioritise protecting human rights and accountability – not deporting people to danger there" [2]. She added, "EU countries are undermining their credibility by condemning Taliban abuses and pursuing accountability on one hand, while cooperating with the Taliban to forcibly return Afghans on the other" [3].
European governments closed their embassies in Kabul when the Taliban returned to power in 2021 [2, 3]. The Brussels talks focused on managing irregular migration and the returns of Afghan nationals without legal status in the EU, stressing the issue separately from diplomatic recognition [2, 3].
The Taliban delegation arrived in Brussels on June 23 after Belgium issued five single-day visas on June 22. The talks took place the same day as their arrival [2, 3].
