On Monday 24 October, after a three-day visit to Iran, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides announced that the European Commission has earmarked a further €6 million in humanitarian aid for vulnerable Afghan refugees in Iran.
In a press release, the Commission explained that the funds released for Afghan refugees will go to support the education of Afghan children. This will take EU emergency humanitarian aid for Iran this year to €12.5 million.
During his visit, Stylianides met the Iranian foreign minister, interior minister and representatives of the Iranian agency for refugees (BAFIA). Alongside discussing EU aid for Iran, which has more than 970,000 registered Afghan refugees and more than 2 million people without official papers, the talks covered greater cooperation in civil protection and reducing the risk of disasters.
On 16 April, during a visit to Tehran by the Commission, the two sides discussed boosting humanitarian coordination and supply of humanitarian aid to crises affecting Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Afghanistan. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)