On Monday (November 22), EU Chief Diplomat Josep Borrell and International Partnership Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen asked Afghanistan’s neighbors to prevent human trafficking when they met with their counterparts in Central Asia in the Tajik capital. EURACTIV A report from Dushanbe.
At the time of this meeting, the Afghanistan crisis has become an important issue on the agenda, and security and immigration are the EU’s main concerns for the region.
Resilience, prosperity and support for regional cooperation-these are the priorities identified in the EU-Central Asia strategy, and today they are more important than ever to guide our participation in the regions that recover after the pandemic.
I am glad to discuss their implementation together today pic.twitter.com/cVtSFsw1oy
-Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) November 22, 2021
The foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan discussed regional issues and partnership initiatives with high-level EU delegations. Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan border Afghanistan.
According to reports, at a meeting held behind closed doors, people agreed that humanitarian assistance and regional cooperation are urgently needed to prevent spillover effects caused by the Taliban takeover.
According to an EU diplomat, Borel called on Central Asian partners to remind their airlines and travel agencies to prevent the delivery of migrants to Belarus.
“I informed the ministers about the border between the EU and Belarus and asked them to support the prevention of this kind of human instrumentalization that risked their lives: deceive people and convince them that there is a way to reach Europe via a flight to Minsk, “Borrel told reporters after the meeting.
Borel told reporters on Monday that Uzbekistan is one of the countries that recently imposed restrictions on flights to Belarus for transit passengers from six countries, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Syria and Yemen.
The same EU diplomat stated that Borel and Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilo had discussed the plan at a dinner in Brussels in mid-November.
Urpilainen said at the same briefing that she had proposed a 1 billion euro aid plan for Afghanistan in the former Soviet republics, almost half of which was dedicated to neighboring countries affected by the crisis.
However, she did not say whether Brussels wants them to accept any refugees in return, and most local governments have so far shown little willingness to do so.
in a Joint release A statement issued after the meeting stated that the two sides “expressed common concern about the impact of developments in Afghanistan on the region” and “emphasized the importance of preventing the use of Afghan territory as a base for hosting, financing or exporting terrorism to other countries.”
Participants pledged to strengthen cooperation between the EU and Central Asia in combating terrorism, organized crime, human trafficking and migrant smuggling, and expressed their expectation to strengthen cooperation between the EU and Central Asia in border management.
Competing with influence
In Dushanbe, Borel expressed his hope that the relationship between the EU and the five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan—will be further strengthened in the future.
“Some people may say that the EU is far from the Central Asia Pacific and has nothing to do with the region, (…) No, on the contrary,” Borrell said after the meeting.
He said: “We are here to tell you that although we may be far apart, in an increasingly interdependent world, we have the ability and willingness to break the distance.”
Borrell added: “We are very happy to be here. Not only do we have a strong team, but we also convey a strong message that the EU is a reliable partner you can rely on for a long time.”
“EU Global Gateway”
Borrell also showed their Central Asian counterparts the blueprint of the EU’s upcoming EU Global Gateway Initiative, which spends more than 40 billion euros on technology and infrastructure, and is regarded by many as an attempt to China’s “One Belt, One Road” plan. Response.
Borel told reporters in Dushanbe that, according to the new strategy, the EU will “assemble multiple tools and resources” to “build connections and launch infrastructure projects” throughout the region in a sustainable manner.
According to EU diplomats, the plan aims to enhance Europe’s global interests and competitiveness, while promoting sustainable environmental standards, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
It also aims to promote better coordination among member states, regional and international partners.
The diplomat told EURACTIV that in Central Asia, the strategy aims to focus on sustainable transport connections and improve the sustainability of planning.
“The region has beautiful mountains and valleys, but it is also vulnerable to climate change,” Borrell said, emphasizing that the Joint Working Group on Environmental and Water Issues will work to resolve these issues.
Earlier this week, Human Rights Watch (HRW) Call on the European Union Urge Central Asian governments to end human rights violations and carry out meaningful reforms.
Participants also emphasized the “importance of progress in the rule of law, democracy, governance, gender equality and universal human rights.”
The next meeting is scheduled to be held in Brussels in 2022.
(Editing by Georgy Getoff)
