The EU Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Tomas Niklasson, has warned that the situation in Afghanistan “will only get worse.”
In an interview with WION News on Saturday, the EU diplomat called on the Taliban to “think carefully about the consequences their decision is having on the people of Afghanistan”. The Taliban government was neither recognised by the people of Afghanistan and nor by the international community.
“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.
The EU, Niklasson said, had remained involved in Afghanistan through diplomatic presence and committing 400 million euros in humanitarian assistance.
“We stay engaged both with the Taliban and other Afghans. So I think, the perception you allude to, the west or Europe leaving Afghanistan is very far from the reality. We are present and intend to stay, we intend to continue to provide humanitarian assistance and are deeply saddened and shocked by the decision by the de facto authority to try to limit the access to most in need of such assistance,” he said.
Tomas Niklasson met Turkish officials in Ankara and Istanbul on 8 February, before leaving for India.
