EU interior ministers announced after talks on August 31 in Brussels that the goal will be to stop the large influx of migrants from Afghanistan by strengthening borders and providing aid.
The EU's declaration avoided promises to accept asylum seekers as Afghans fight for their own security as Taliban militants took control of the country after the withdrawal of US-led international forces that had been engaged for 20 years, Radio Free Europe reports in English.
"Based on the lessons learned, the EU is determined to act together to prevent the recurrence of uncontrolled large-scale illegal migration movements that it has faced in the past," the statement said.
The ministers said the European bloc would prefer to cooperate with Afghanistan's neighbors in an effort to "strengthen their capacities to provide protection, [and] dignified and safe conditions for the reception" of refugees.
Luxembourg reportedly sought stronger public pledges to resettle Afghans trying to escape life under the radical Islamist group, which launched a two-decade insurgency against the internationally-backed government after being ousted in 2001, following a US-led invasion over terrorist attacks on Washington. and New York on 11/XNUMX.
"We have to work on a global level so that people stay close to their homes and their culture," said German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, adding that only people who have been abused should come to the EU.
Afghans "should not come to Europe, but stay in their region. Our task is to stabilize the region and ensure that the international organizations working there are funded so that they can help people who need protection," said the Danish Minister Matijas Tesfaj.
A similar position was expressed by the Czech and Austrian ministers, while France insists on "coherence between the acceptance of refugees and firm control".
French Minister Gérald Darmanen said that the goal is to help those who have helped the EU, but that immigration without control should not be accepted. European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Ilva Johansson said it was important to "avoid a humanitarian and migrant crisis, as well as security threats from Afghanistan." "We need to act now, not wait for people to reach our borders, or to see how terrorist organizations grow stronger," said Iva Johansson.
Many Afghans still have fresh memories of harsh punishments, mass public executions, patrols and strict bans on women's education, music and culture and other aspects of life when the Taliban controlled much of the country in the mid-to-late 1990s.
But the announcement from Brussels on August 31 only said that "support could be provided in the form of resettlement on a voluntary basis, giving priority to vulnerable people, such as women and children."
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has asked the EU to help as concerns grow on the old continent about a new migration wave similar to the 2015 influx that caused deep divisions among European allies.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said he did not expect large numbers of refugees from Afghanistan to reach Europe, as long as those fleeing the country were being helped.
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