“We do not recognize the interim government, but we see value in engaging and discussing with them,” said European Union special envoy for Afghanistan Tomas Niklasson.
He made the remarks at a press briefing in Kabul on Thursday.
“I want to state that nothing has changed in terms of the EU’s overall position toward Afghanistan. We do not recognize the interim government, but we see value in engaging and discussing with them. We have re-established our presence on the ground through our delegation,” he said.
The EU special envoy also pledged that humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan would continue.
Niklasson expressed concerns over the imposition of restrictions on Afghan women, and girls’ education.
“We have also seen restrictions on women participating in public life. We see no women in the senior positions in government,” he said.
Niklasson said the EU’s assistance to Afghanistan has remained neutral.
“Our humanitarian assistance is always based on a … needs assessment. The principles are very clear including neutrality and impartiality. We do not give food or services to the people we like or sympathize with or who are close to us in any way. We remain neutral. We remained neutral during the previous regime and the basic bases for our work throughout the world,” he said.
After the Islamic Emirate swept into power, there have been several visits of foreign envoys but none of them have so far recognized Afghanistan.
Earlier, on Monday the EU special envoy Tomas Niklasson tweeted he was heading to Tashkent with EU Special Representative for Central Asia Terhi Hakala to discuss Afghanistan’s regional significance and how the EU can “engage as a constructive partner.”
The representatives “stressed a continuous need to ensure good governance and service delivery, promote and respect rule of law, universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of all Afghans, in particular of women and girls as well as children and persons belonging to ethnic groups and minorities, and the establishment of an inclusive and representative government through a credible and legitimate political process in which meaningful participation by all ethnic and political stakeholders, including women and minorities is respected.”
The participants also reaffirmed EU and Central Asia cooperation in support of the Afghan people as well as security and “resilience in a wider region.”
According to the statement, the participants also reiterated the “ambitions” for a developed, stable, secure, independent and prosperous Afghanistan in which “all Afghan women and men can enjoy the full rights and freedoms afforded to them by the international commitments to which Afghanistan is a signatory, and that threats to others do not emanate from Afghanistan in line with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2593, including freedom of movement, and provision of safe passage.”
They also expressed concerns over the Afghan humanitarian crisis and called for a concerted response by the international community.
The envoys and representatives underscored the importance of averting Afghan soil from being“used as a base for hosting, financing or exporting terrorism and violent extremism to other countries.”
The Islamic Emirate has yet to comment, but it has previously said that there is no threat to any country from Afghan soil. The Islamic Emirate has also denied the reports of several organizations and remarks of Western officials about the presence of foreign terrorist groups in Afghanistan.
The participants “underlined the important role of strengthened regional cooperation to support an inclusive political process in Afghanistan that is vital for future social and economic development of the country,” the statement reads.
