Brussels, 20/07/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 20 July, the European foreign affairs ministers hailed the progress on the cooperation agreement for partnership and development that was initialled on 2 July (see EUROPE 11350). This agreement identifies the broad areas for cooperation and provides a framework for commitment.
In its conclusions, the Council also approves the first annual report of the EU strategy on Afghanistan for 2014-2016 (see EUROPE 11107), reaffirming its continued commitment to the goal of the strategy. This strategy aims to develop Afghan institutions “to provide the resilience needed to safeguard progress to date and provide the platform for a more effective and ultimately sustainable Afghan state”.
The EU foreign ministers believe that it is “now urgent” that the national unity government take “immediate and concrete” actions to deliver on the reform commitments made, with regard, for example to electoral reform, the fight against corruption and threats linked to drugs and organised crime, the recovery of economic growth, the functioning of the justice system and the respect of human rights and the rule of law.
All the countries in the region should support an inclusive settlement in Afghanistan which avoids violence, the Council underlines, condemning the actions by insurgent groups against civilians, democratic institutions and civil society.
In the face of increased migratory flows coming from Afghanistan, the Council encourages the government to take measures and asks the Commission, in close cooperation with High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, to assess the possibility of engaging in an in-depth dialogue on migration issues.
The Commission is also asked to assess the possibility of making financing from the European Investment Bank in Afghanistan eligible under an EU guarantee, “in particular with the aim of contributing to regional prosperity and connectivity, given the improved prospects for regional cooperation”. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)