The delegation of five Taliban representatives who met with the European Commission yesterday, as well as a total of 15 member states, asked the EU for diplomatic recognition in exchange for advancing the deportations of Afghans who "have committed serious crimes or represent a threat to security".
"It has been a historic visit, as it is the first time that a delegation from the Islamic Emirate visited the EU and held talks with member states in Brussels," said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson for the Taliban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who led the delegation. He explained that for the regime, it is a priority to "restart comprehensive consular services for Afghans in the EU area, including the need for measures to build trust, consular presence, and a dignified return process."
The Taliban's demand stems from Germany being the only EU country that has recognized and accepted diplomats appointed by the regime. In the vast majority of remaining Afghan embassies, management still falls to officials appointed before 2021, that is, before they came to power. But the fundamentalists want more presence, more recognition, and more diplomatic capacity.
The Taliban's visit to Brussels has been very controversial. Many voices in the EU capital believe that the Commission made a big mistake by meeting with Afghan representatives, arguing that there should be no dialogue with a regime that does not respect fundamental rights and engages in systematic persecution and exclusion of women and girls. That this is inappropriate for the EU and goes against its values.
Faced with this pressure, the European Commission has tried to be particularly cautious and somewhat opaque. First, they avoided confirming the meeting when it had already been announced from Kabul that the delegation was on its way to Brussels. And then, they did not provide details on the content of the meeting or which are those 15 representatives from different member states who also attended the meeting. But what the Commission has emphasized is that this meeting is a direct result of the capitals' request. It is not that President Ursula von der Leyen ordered to initiate contacts on her own initiative.
"Ministers from 20 member states and countries associated with the Schengen area requested the Commission, through a joint letter sent in October 2025, to coordinate EU-level technical contacts on return and readmission with Afghanistan, emphasizing that the return of individuals who have committed serious crimes or represent a threat to security is a priority," a spokesperson for the European Commission recalled yesterday. Among these countries are Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, and Italy.
"To advance these discussions, the Commission's services and Sweden co-chaired a technical meeting in Brussels today [yesterday] with representatives, also at a technical level, of the de facto Afghan authorities responsible for return and readmission matters," he stressed.
Regarding the meeting itself, he barely pointed out that "15 member states participated, which allowed for the continuation of technical discussions held in January 2026 in Kabul, especially regarding the identification of returnees, the issuance of travel documents, and their return." "The focus of the discussions was on individuals who have committed serious crimes and represent a threat to security," he added.
The meeting with the Taliban also takes place in a context of tightening migration policies in the EU. Countries have already agreed on measures such as return centers outside the EU, which when initially proposed seemed like a completely extreme solution and is now a norm. In just two years. And some delegations indicate that they could be a reality this year or at the latest in 2027. This is what the European population has voted for, and that includes having discussions with a totalitarian and misogynistic regime like the Taliban to expedite the departure of Afghan immigrants.