1. Today I conclude my five day visit to Kabul, together with my Political Advisor Ms Erja Kaikkonen, kindly hosted and accompanied by Veronika Boskovic-Pohar, the EU Chief of Mission to Afghanistan, and her team. I would like to thank everybody who took the time to see us and share their experiences and perspectives on the current situation and the future, and Veronika and colleagues for all their support before and during our mission. In the course of our visit we met, among others:

• The UN SRSG Otunbayeva, DSRSG Gagnon, and representatives of UNAMA, UN agencies, the World Bank and the diplomatic community;
• The acting Deputy Prime Minister for Political Affairs, the acting Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the acting Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Livelihoods and Water Mawlawi Sadar Azam Osmani.
• Representatives of civil society and the business community, including Afghan women;
• Afghan journalists; and
• Representatives of international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) working in Afghanistan, as well as colleagues from DG ECHO and the EU Delegation to Afghanistan.

2. Whereas the security situation inside the country did not feature prominently on the list of concerns among most Afghans we met, representatives of neighbouring countries highlighted their continued serious concerns about the security threats emanating from Afghanistan due to the continued presence and cross-border activities carried out by terrorist groups operating from inside the country. We were also shocked by, and condemn, what appears to have been a suicide attack carried out yesterday, claimed by IS-KP, killing the acting Minister of Repatriation and Refugees, whom I met when visiting Afghanistan last spring, and killing or wounding several others. I would like to convey my condolences to the families of the victims and hope for a full recovery of those injured.

3. In meetings with the de facto authorities and the UN, we discussed the challenges of sustaining the substantial reduction in opium production, following the decree issued in 2022, as the price of raw opium has multiplied, with no immediate alternative source of income available for many households, and in a country where the direct impact of climate change is most directly felt. I had a good discussion with the acting Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, and informed him that the EU has provided more than €150 million in direct support in the field of agriculture, which has reached more than 1 million people. Support to rural communities helping them to mitigate the effects of climate change is crucial for livelihoods. Adopting new agriculture practises to strengthen climate resilience requires training and advice in growing new crops. This is not an administrative cost but a crucial part of effective support to farmers. In our discussions I clarified that the EU has impact and effective use of resources as its highest priority. I expressed our concern that restrictions imposed on EU’s implementing partners and lengthy approval processes are making implementation more expensive and less effective. The EU will continue to support communities in Afghanistan through our INGO partners and promote private sector linkages to agriculture and access to markets inside and outside Afghanistan. We are currently planning to allocate an additional €45 million for new projects in this sector.

4. Many farmers will not find any alternative crop that can provide sufficient levels of predictable income to sustain their families. Men and women in affected communities will need access to education and training to prepare them for jobs also outside the agricultural sector. During our visit, I had opportunities to meet with representatives of the private sector, women and men entrepreneurs, and I will continue these meetings later today. Afghanistan needs a thriving private sector to ensure employment and prosperity for its people. I reminded interlocutors that there are no sanctions on Afghanistan or its financial sector from the EU. On the contrary, the EU is fully open to business with Afghanistan and no tariffs or quotas are imposed on Afghan exports to the EU. Access to finance, especially for small and medium sized companies is crucial. The EU is already supporting this sector and I had the pleasure of engaging with two small business, one led by a woman and one by a man, who had been assisted by an INGO funded by the EU, which supports the businesses with training, mentoring and facilitation of access to international markets and a small grant. We invite the de facto authorities to ensure, through dialogue with the sector, a practical implementation of regulation to facilitate access to microfinance also for informal businesses and women-led businesses. It is also clear that without a transparent legal framework for foreign investment it is unlikely that reputable international investors will see Afghanistan as an attractive destination.

5. In meetings with the de facto authorities, INGO and private sector representative and the UN, and in a roundtable discussion with Afghan women, I recalled EU’s strongest concerns about the so-called PVPV law issued in August. Many Afghans explained how this law was further complicating the work of companies and organisations, with the strongest impact on women’s ability to move, to work, to access services and to provide for their families. For the EU, the challenges faced by implementing partners due to the PVPV ‘law’ have lead to increased costs in providing assistance to the people of Afghanistan and further shrinking operational space. INGOs, through which the EU provides a significant part of its €1.6 billion humanitarian, basic needs and livelihood assistance to the people of Afghanistan since 2021, also expressed their concerns about reports circulating from a Cabinet meeting in Kandahar a few days ago proposing or imposing severe restrictions on the operations and presence of INGOs in Afghanistan. In my meeting with the de facto authorities, I pointed out the negative consequences such decisions would have on our ability to provide assistance to the people of Afghanistan, but received no further details.

6. We also raised with the de facto authorities, including in my meeting with acting deputy Prime Minister Kabir, our strong concern about the oral directive of 2 December closing access for women and girls to medical education across the country in more than 180 public and private education institutions. No one in our meetings with the de facto authorities was able to give us an explanation why this directive had been issued or how the potentially catastrophic consequences for women’s and children’s health were going to be addressed. Nor did they indicate any concrete plans to reverse this decision, or to lift the ban on access of girls and women to secondary public schools and universities, now in place since three years.

7. I also discussed with UNAMA and with the de facto authorities the UN-led efforts to put in place a multi-lateral process of engagement between Afghanistan and the international community, to take forward the recommendations in last year’s report by UN Special Coordinator Feridun Sinirlioglu (often referred to as the Doha process). I welcomed the fact that a first virtual meeting of the Doha working group on counternarcotics had been held on 28 November, in which I participated representing the EU – a lead partner and provider of assistance in this field. I also recalled EU’s firm conviction that for this process to become credible and meaningful, there is a need for a dedicated UN focal point, as called for by the UN Security Council, who would, in particular, lead the coordination between international participants in the process and develop an overarching framework, or a roadmap, that can help us address all the main issues and recommendations covered in the report.

8. To conclude, I leave Afghanistan still deeply troubled with respect to the current humanitarian, political, human rights and economic situation and the overall direction in which the country seems to be going, more specifically as a result of recent decrees and directives. I still believe in engagement rather than closing doors and hope that we can find ways of including more and different voices from Afghan youth and experts in meetings where we discuss the future of Afghanistan. All our interlocutors advised us to take a long-term perspective on our relations and our engagement. While I acknowledge this as a wise piece of advice I still do see the need for urgent action to address certain issues, in particular by the de facto authorities, for the EU to be able to continue its engagement and support to the people of Afghanistan in its current form and volume.