EU Special Envoy Says Situation in Afghanistan Will Only Get Worse
European Union's special envoy Tomas Niklasson has called on the Taliban to carefully think about the consequences of their regressive policies on the people of Afghanistan.
European Union's special envoy Tomas Niklasson has called on the Taliban to carefully think about the consequences of their regressive policies on the people of Afghanistan.
In an interview with an Indian media outlet, WION, the EU special envoy for Afghanistan said that the situation in the country will only get worse.
“We have seen systematic violations of human rights under the de facto government, under the Taliban issuing various decrees, restricting the freedom of movement, and the rights of girls and women. Clamping down on journalists, and ethnic, and religious minorities being under threat. There is no constitution in place, the economy has declined rapidly since the Taliban took over and the security situation is deeply concerning both inside the country, with growing threats from organisations such as ISIS K,” Niklasson said.
Niklasson in the interview in Delhi said, "Afghanistan already harbours quite a number of Jihadis or militant organisations and neighbours are gravely concerned by the security situation.”
He also stressed that with the winter in Afghanistan at least 28 million people are relying on humanitarian aid, but the Taliban decided to ban women from working for NGOs, which in turn restricts full access to suffering Afghans.
On India, Niklasson said that the country has been providing beneficial aid to the Afghans, but is still contemplating on how to engage with the country further.
While emphasising that engagement with the Taliban is necessary for some, Niklasson said that they need to maintain contact with the people of Afghanistan, convey messages, understand the ground situation and facilitate the delivery of assistance.
Niklasson reiterated that the EU continues to stand with the Afghans as it has committed more than Euro 400 million of assistance to Afghanistan which is far more than most regional countries have contributed. He said that currently, they have to focus on what they can do to provide assistance and support to 40 million Afghans who desperately need support, at a time when the Taliban are bringing in radical decrees.
On suppression of women in the country, the EU special envoy stated that the change has to come from inside Afghanistan and they can only remind the Taliban of their obligations under international law.
On Pakistan, Nicklasson stated that Pakistan is deeply concerned by the security threat coming from Afghanistan while on Russia, he stated that it has not played a very constructive role apart from organising a number of regional format meetings.
