Borrell Says EU Has No Other Option But To Engage With Taliban Government

Sumaira FH Published September 14, 2021 | 11:30 PM

The European Union has no option but to engage with the interim government announced by the Taliban (a terrorist organization, banned by the United Nations and some countries, including Russia) in Afghanistan, although this does not imply recognition from the bloc, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Tuesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th September, 2021) The European Union has no option but to engage with the interim government announced by the Taliban (a terrorist organization, banned by the United Nations and some countries, including Russia) in Afghanistan, although this does not imply recognition from the bloc, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Tuesday.

"We have no other option but to engage with the Taliban. Engaging does not mean recognition, but engaging means talking, discussing, agreeing when possible," the diplomat said during the European Parliament's first plenary session this season.

The new Afghan government by the Taliban is not inclusive and many individual members are also on the UN sanctions list. However, the EU will evaluate the level of engagement based on five benchmarks which the bloc's commission set out with member states earlier in September, Borrell added.

Those five benchmarks are respect for human rights, including women's rights and freedom of the media; the rule of law; the establishment of a "representative transition government"; the uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid to the country; as well as avoiding making Afghanistan a "safe haven" and hub for international terrorism.

The international community is hesitant about establishing relations with the Taliban as the governing power in the country due to the radical views the movement espouses about various things. However, many Western countries have established a form of communication with the group in order the better to coordinate evacuation of their citizens from the country, as well as the allocation of humanitarian aid in the aftermath of the August takeover.