EU to invite Taliban officials to Brussels to hold migration talks

BRUSSELS: The European Commission is planning a first meeting with Taliban officials in Brussels on ways to deport some Afghan migrants, despite warnings from human rights groups that such engagement could endanger Afghans and violate core EU values.

Western countries have refused to recognise the Taliban since the hardline group regained power in Afghanistan in 2021, overthrowing a U.S.- and NATO-backed government.

Commission spokesman Markus Lammert said on Tuesday the planned meeting was being coordinated with Sweden, at the request of several other member states, but no date had yet been set.

The EU executive Commission and the Swedish Justice Ministry “sent a letter to the de facto authorities in Afghanistan to inquire about their availability for a meeting at technical level in Brussels”, Lammert told reporters.

The focus, he said, was on the return of people “who pose a security threat” and such a meeting would not imply EU recognition of the Taliban government. EU officials previously held talks with the Taliban in Kabul in January, Lammert added.

The Swedish government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rights groups criticise EU move

Rights groups say engaging the Taliban on migration undermines EU principles and have urged the bloc to prioritise protection of Afghan refugees over deportations.

“It is deeply alarming that discussions are taking place about deporting Afghans back to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan,” said Reshad Jalali, Senior Policy Officer at the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE), citing risks of persecution and violations of the principle of non-refoulement.

Taliban authorities have rolled back rights since 2021, restricting women’s movement and barring girls from education beyond primary school, while enforcing morality laws that limit expression and employment.

“Deporting people to such conditions risks making the EU complicit in exposing them to danger and abuse,” Jalali said.

Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have sought asylum in Europe since the Taliban takeover. EU law allows for deportations of people convicted of serious crimes or deemed security threats in certain cases, but returns to Afghanistan have been limited due to the lack of diplomatic relations.

Although Afghans are among the nationalities with the highest asylum recognition rates in the EU, overall acceptance has tightened as migration policies become more restrictive.

Afghanistan is currently mired in a deep humanitarian crisis. According to the U.N. World Food Programme, more than 17 million people are “food insecure”, while the country is absorbing tens of thousands of returnees from Iran and Pakistan.