Taliban Delegation Arrives in Brussels for EU Talks on Returning Rejected Afghan Migrants

A Taliban delegation arrived in Brussels for talks with European Union officials on returning rejected Afghan migrants, with the discussions reported to have taken place on Tuesday (June 23).

“Afghan Taliban to hold rare, closed-door talks with EU officials on deportations A Taliban delegation is in Brussels for talks with the European Union, focusing on deportations, according to a Taliban official BRUSSELS -- A delegation from the Afghan Taliban is traveling to Brussels on Tuesday for closed-door talks with European Union staff, expected to focus on deportations, said a Taliban official”

ABC News

Belgium granted the delegation one-day visas after security assessments, with the visas limited to Belgium and not the wider Schengen Area, and the visit described as the first time the EU would host Taliban representatives since the group took back control in Afghanistan.

ABC News

The European Commission said the exchange was held at a "technical level" and focused on the deportation of Afghans to their home country, while Abdul Qahar Balkhi, a spokesperson for the Taliban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the sides spoke about "restarting broad-range consular services for Afghans in [the] EU zone".

DW reported that representatives from 15 member states participated in the talks, and that Belgium approved five visas on Monday following a "security assessment" by the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman.

Rights groups and researchers condemned the Brussels meeting as undermining EU human rights obligations, with Fereshta Abbasi of Human Rights Watch warning that EU countries are "undermining their credibility" by condemning abuses while cooperating to forcibly return Afghans.

In response to the criticism, the European Commission spokesperson Markus Lammert told reporters that contact with the Taliban had been ongoing "for a while" and said the Commission was acting in response to a 2025 letter from 20 EU member states asking the bloc to "coordinate technical contacts on returns."

Amnesty International

Tineke Strik, a Dutch Member of the European Parliament (MEP), told DW that if the EU starts cooperating it "normalize[s]" the Taliban, adding that it takes away the EU's power by not recognizing them.

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said Belgium cannot confer legitimacy on a regime accused of serious human rights violations, and ABC News reported that Belgium would comply with EU requests to grant the Taliban visas while emphasizing that the meeting would not take place in official buildings or sites belonging to either.

The talks were framed as part of European efforts to speed up deportations of Afghans who have no legal right to remain, with DW saying the discussions could advance European efforts to deport Afghans who have no legal right to remain.

“BrusselsTheTaliban arrived in Brussels this Tuesdayto discuss the deportation of immigrants to Afghanistan”

Diari ARA

NPR reported that the meeting focused on diplomatic services and "dignified returns" of Afghans, and it quoted Abdul Qahar Balkhi saying the visit was "a historic visit" as the first time the delegation visited the EU and held talks in Brussels.

Human rights groups warned that the engagement could endanger people in Europe and Afghanistan, and InfoMigrants quoted FIDH President Alexis Deswaef saying inviting the Taliban for talks on EU soil provides "a form of political legitimacy" to a regime responsible for gender-based persecution.

The sources also tied the Brussels talks to broader migration pressure in Europe, with DW citing EU data that member states received about 1 million asylum applications from Afghans between 2013 and 2024 and saying around 20 EU countries signaled interest last year in returning some Afghans without a right to stay.