On Wednesday 22 April, Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, called for a ceasefire in Afghanistan.
At the end of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting, where ministers discussed the political and military stalemate in the country, he stated that “together with its international and local partners, including Afghan civil society, the EU is calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire so that the country can address the current crisis” involving COVID-19. More than 1,170 cases have already been confirmed in the country.
While highlighting “some positive signs”, such as an initial prisoner exchange between the Afghan government and the Taliban in recent days, Borrell lamented the fact that the political process is not moving quickly enough.
At the same time, Petras Auštrevičius (Renew Europe, Lithuania), the chair of the European Parliament delegation for relations with Afghanistan, called on both parties in the conflict to accept a humanitarian ceasefire that is “immediate, total, and nationwide”. “I also call on the divided camps led by Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah to put aside their differences and agree on the substantive issues”, he added, stating that continued fighting and intra-governmental disagreements would make victory against the coronavirus impossible.
He also called on the Commission and the European External Action Service to give the country greater support in tackling COVID-19, including by providing the country with medical equipment and increasing financial assistance. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)