European Union Efforts to Stop Massive Wave of Migration from Afghanistan

Member states of the European Union are determined to stop “uncontrolled migration” from Afghanistan following the takeover of Kabul by the extremist Taliban.

According to Reuters, this is part of a draft joint statement that interior ministers of EU member states are scheduled to issue at an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday, September 3rd (August 31st).

EU members wish to prevent by any means a repeat of the massive influx of migrants and asylum seekers into European countries in 2015.

Six years ago, EU member states faced a massive wave of asylum seekers without prior preparation, which led to crisis and tensions in countries like Greece and Italy, and one of its consequences was the rise in power of far-right extremist groups.

Taliban and Massive Migration Wave

Since two weeks ago when the extremist Taliban took control of Kabul much faster than anticipated and surprisingly, tens of thousands of Afghan citizens have left the country and tens of thousands more are attempting to leave.

Interior ministers of EU member states in a statement that Reuters has obtained a draft copy of emphasize that based on previous lessons, they are determined to take joint measures to prevent a repeat of the experience of a widespread flow of illegal and uncontrolled migration.

One of the key solutions and main measures of the European Union to prevent a repeat of the 2015 experience is to have a “coordinated and systematic” response to recent developments.

Half a Million Afghan Migrants by Year’s End

European countries’ effort to adopt a coordinated and unified measure is not unrelated to the latest report of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, which estimates that the number of Afghans leaving their country by the end of the current year could reach 500,000 people.

Following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul, the United States and its allies evacuated tens of thousands of citizens, military and diplomatic personnel, and their local partners from Afghanistan.

According to the agreement between the United States and Taliban, the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan should be completed by August 31st.

On this basis, in recent days, Western countries’ efforts have focused on extracting their remaining troops from Afghanistan, with countries like Germany and Britain withdrawing all their soldiers.

Tens of thousands of local partners of foreign forces and their families remain in Afghanistan, and with the takeover by extremist Islamists, their fate and future and that of other citizens remain uncertain and bleak.

The High Commissioner for Refugees announced on Monday that a new widespread crisis has begun for the 39 million population of Afghanistan and called for solidarity and support for them.

Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, called on more countries to open their borders to Afghan asylum seekers and shoulder greater responsibility alongside Iran and Pakistan, which have accommodated 2.2 million refugees.

Complexity of Providing Aid to Afghanistan

Reuters quotes a senior European official saying that at the emergency meeting on Tuesday, August 31st (September 3rd), the European Union’s commitment to allocate more humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and its neighboring countries will be emphasized, although providing this aid has become much more complicated following the Taliban’s rise to power.

In the draft statement of Tuesday’s meeting, it is stated that the European Union should increase aid to Afghanistan’s neighboring countries so that migrants first receive necessary support in that region.

In the 2015 refugee crisis, Turkey, in exchange for receiving substantial financial aid from the European Union, prevented millions of Syrian refugees from passing through its territory to reach European countries.

Nevertheless, Ankara is showing less willingness to cooperate regarding Afghan refugees; Turkey is concerned about its own social and security situation due to the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis and is not willing to accept large numbers of Afghan refugees.

Meanwhile, senior officials from several European and Central Asian countries held a video conference on Monday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan and specific measures to support Afghan migrants and refugees.

Representatives from Austria, Germany, Greece, Denmark, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan participated in this conference. The EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs was also invited to this conference but was unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts.

One of the objectives of this conference is described as understanding Afghanistan’s situation from the perspective of its northern neighbors. Alexander Schallenberg, Austria’s Foreign Minister, has asked the United Nations to organize a conference as soon as possible with the participation of countries providing financial aid to Afghanistan so that the necessary resources for supporting migrants are provided.