EU to convene special forum on resettlement of Afghans in need

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The statement comes as the EU Ministers of Home Affairs met for an extraordinary Council meeting to discuss developments in Afghanistan on Tuesday…reports Asian Lite News.

The European Commission will organise a special high-level forum in September to discuss the resettlement of needy Afghans, European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said on Tuesday.

“As part of the follow up to the #JHA @EUCouncil today, I will convene, in September, a High-Level Resettlement Forum to discuss concrete priorities with the Member States and provide sustainable solutions to those Afghans who are most vulnerable, particularly women and children, but also human rights activists, journalists, lawyers. We will cooperate together with the other global leaders on a coordinated approach to safe and legal routes for resettlement,” Johansson said on Twitter.

The EU also said that it will continue to coordinate with the UN and its agencies on the stabilisation of Afghanistan, ensure that humanitarian aid reaches vulnerable populations and for this purpose, will also step up financial support.

“As an immediate priority, the EU will continue to coordinate with international partners, in particular the UN and its agencies, on the stabilization of the region and to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches the vulnerable populations, in particular women and children, in Afghanistan and in neighbouring countries. To this end, the EU and its Member States will step up financial support to relevant international organisations,” EU said in a statement.

The statement comes as the EU Ministers of Home Affairs met for an extraordinary Council meeting to discuss developments in Afghanistan on Tuesday.

EU also said that it will engage and strengthen its support to third countries, in particular the neighbouring and transit countries, hosting large numbers of migrants and refugees, to reinforce their capacities to provide protection, dignified and safe reception conditions and sustainable livelihood for refugees and host communities.

The EU and its Member States stand determined to act jointly to prevent the recurrence of uncontrolled large-scale illegal migration movements faced in the past, by preparing a coordinated and orderly response, the sattement said.

Stepping up cooperation with Iran, Pakistan

The EU intends to increase cooperation with Afghanistan’s neighbours to help them cope better with the consequences of the Afghan crisis, a top official said.

“They are at the forefront, on the firing line, in terms of the consequences of this crisis: the humanitarian consequences, the migration consequences, regarding stability or the lack thereof, and also terrorist threats,” Peter Stano, the European Commission’s lead spokesperson for external affairs, said in a statement.

Stepping up cooperation with countries such as Iran and Pakistan, which are the most likely to bear the burden of the crisis, was the first decision made by the EU when the Afghan crisis began, Stano said.

Top EU officials have already opened a dialogue with officials of Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries on ways to expand cooperation.

The United States forces left Afghanistan on Tuesday morning, marking the end of chaotic and messy exit from America’s longest war.

Taliban terrorists celebrated the “full independence” of Afghanistan. Celebratory gunfire broke out across the city in Kabul.

“The last American soldiers departed from Kabul airport, and our country has achieved a full independence, thanks to God,” Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, said on Twitter.

Moreover, the control of the airport was left in the hands of the Taliban, who said they were still working on the shape of their new government. (ANI)

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