The European Commission is facing growing criticism after confirming plans to invite Taliban representatives to Brussels for sensitive talks on the deportation and return of Afghanistan migrants from Europe. The move, coordinated with Sweden, has reignited debate over the EU’s engagement with Afghanistan’s de facto rulers despite ongoing international condemnation of the Taliban’s human rights abuses, particularly against women and girls.
The European Commission is preparing to invite Taliban representatives to Brussels for technical talks on the return of Afghanistan refugees and migrants from Europe, despite the EU’s continued refusal to officially recognise the Taliban government. The planned discussions, coordinated with Sweden, were confirmed by the Commission to AFP and are expected to focus on migration cooperation and deportation procedures for the people from Afghanistan considered to have no legal right to remain in Europe.
The Brussels meeting would follow earlier contacts between European officials and Taliban authorities in Kabul. In January, representatives from the EU and Belgium, including Belgian immigration office director-general Freddy Roosemont, travelled to Afghanistan for talks on migration and returns. Belgian asylum and migration minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt later described a follow-up meeting in Brussels as “an important and necessary” next step.
No official date has yet been announced for the Taliban delegation’s visit. To travel to Belgium, Taliban officials would require exceptional visas, a move likely to trigger political debate both in Belgium and at the European level.
The initiative comes as around 20 EU member states push for stricter migration policies and explore ways to deport people from Afghanistan nationals, including individuals convicted of crimes. Germany has already deported them with criminal records since 2024, while other countries are considering similar measures.
At the same time, the talks have sparked criticism because of the Taliban’s human rights record since returning to power in 2021. The European Union itself has condemned what it describes as the “systematic and horrific exclusion of women and girls” in Afghanistan, as well as severe restrictions on press freedom and political rights.
Humanitarian organisations have also warned about conditions facing returnees. Since 2023, more than five million citizens from Afghanistan have been forcibly returned from Iran and Pakistan, with many facing homelessness, unemployment, and worsening humanitarian conditions. Despite this situation, remained the largest group of people from Afghanistan seeking asylum in the European Union in 2025.
European Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner is expected to face questions in the European Parliament over the decision to host Taliban representatives in Brussels and the broader policy of engaging with Afghanistan’s de facto rulers on migration issues.
