On the situation in Afghanistan: supporting women and communities affected by the recent earthquakes

B100416/2025

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Afghanistan: supporting women and communities affected by the recent earthquakes

(2025/2872(RSP))

The European Parliament,

–having regard to Council Decision 2011/486/CFSP of 1 August 2011 concerning restrictive measures directed against certain individuals, groups, undertakings and entities in view of the situation in Afghanistan,

–having regard to the EU-Afghanistan Joint Declaration on Migration Cooperation, signed on 26 April 2021,

–having regard to the ongoing Trans-Afghan Railway project and regional connectivity initiatives,

–having regard to the recognition of the Taliban government by several countries in 2025,

–having regard to China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Afghanistan’s expressed interest in participation,

–having regard to the findings of the 2024 revision of the UN World Population Prospects with regard to Afghanistan’s demographic development,

–having regard to Rule 136(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.whereas Afghanistan is facing a severe crisis characterised by economic collapse, poverty and food insecurity; whereas this crisis is exacerbated by natural disasters such as devastating earthquakes and floods;

B.whereas on 31 August 2025, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 struck the province of Kunar in eastern Afghanistan, killing around 3 000 people, injuring around 4 000 and destroying 8 000 homes; whereas at least 17 aftershocks had been felt by 1 September 2025; whereas the most severe aftershock struck the region on 4 September 2025; whereas Afghanistan lies in a seismically active region, where earthquakes are fairly common as a result of tectonic activity;

C.whereas Afghanistan’s population has more than doubled since the beginning of the century, increasing from approximately 19.5 million in 2000 to over 40 million in 2021; whereas Afghanistan’s population is projected to reach around 76.9 million by mid-2050; whereas Afghanistan’s dramatic population growth and extremely high birth rate can primarily be attributed to cultural factors and religious beliefs within Afghan society;

D.whereas the EU provided Afghanistan with more than EUR 4 billion between the end of 2001 and 2020; whereas between 2003 and 2020, more than 20 % of the EU’s total spending on Afghanistan was specifically aimed at supporting governance and civil society and improving women’s rights;

E.whereas since 2021, the EU has provided over EUR 860 million in humanitarian funding for Afghanistan; whereas the EU’s humanitarian aid provision for Afghanistan in 2025 is set to total EUR 161 million;

F.whereas the EU is donating EUR 1 million in humanitarian funds and 130 tonnes of in-kind assistance to Afghanistan in response to the recent earthquakes;

G.whereas for years, Afghans have been one of the main nationalities reported as having illegally crossed the EU’s external borders; whereas Afghanistan has also been one of the main countries of origin for asylum applications in the EU; whereas there was a record increase in the inflow of Afghans in 2015 when former German Chancellor Angela Merkel opened Germany’s borders, with the number of Afghan immigrants exceeding 200 000; whereas at the end of June 2021, 82 000 of the 703 000 asylum applications still pending in EU countries had been filed by Afghans, mostly in Germany and France;

H.whereas the complete lack of progress on returns of Afghans prompted the EU to sign the Joint Declaration on Migration Cooperation (JDMC) with Afghanistan in April 2021 to facilitate and accelerate returns; whereas the JDMC was suspended after the Taliban took over in August 2021;

I.whereas in August 2025, Reform UK announced new plans to return around 600 000 illegal migrants within five years of a Reform government coming to power, including by way of returns agreements with countries such as Iran, Eritrea and Afghanistan; whereas the Taliban regime has indicated its readiness and willingness to take back deported illegal migrants; whereas the US administration’s decision to end the legal status of thousands of Afghans enables their return to Afghanistan; whereas it is reported that the Trump administration and the Taliban are ‘working together’ to fight Islamist terrorism; whereas several European countries, including Germany, Switzerland and Austria, have sent delegations to Afghanistan or have hosted Taliban officials on their territory in order to facilitate returns of Afghans;

J.whereas on 4 October 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) confirmed that gender and nationality were sufficient grounds to grant Afghan women asylum;

K.whereas the Taliban’s diplomacy in Central Asia is increasingly focused on economic cooperation, prioritising infrastructure development and promoting trade expansion; whereas Afghanistan is working with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in the field of border security;

L.whereas Afghanistan possesses mineral resources valued at up to USD 3 trillion, including substantial deposits of lithium, copper and rare earth elements, all of which are essential for modern industry;

M.whereas Afghanistan serves as a crucial transit corridor connecting Central Asia with South Asia and the Arabian Sea and has major infrastructure projects under way, including the Trans-Afghan Railway, which is valued at USD 4.8 billion; whereas Afghanistan’s integration into China’s Belt and Road Initiative could fundamentally alter the region’s economic dynamics;

N.whereas China has invested significantly in Afghanistan’s extractive sector, including through a USD 540 million oil extraction contract in the Amu Darya basin;

O.whereas various Central Asian countries continue to cooperate with Afghanistan in the field of energy despite its international isolation, demonstrating the country’s regional integration;

P.whereas according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, by July 2025, Afghanistan’s diplomatic presence abroad had increased significantly to 23 missions that are run by and/or cooperate with the Taliban regime; whereas this includes the appointment of Taliban ambassadors to the UAE (August 2024), Pakistan (May 2025), Türkiye (June 2025) and Russia (July 2025) and of Taliban chargés d’affaires in Egypt, Indonesia and Oman;

Q.whereas the absence of formal diplomatic relations severely hampers effective cooperation on migration management and return procedures;

1.Expresses its condolences to the families of the victims of the recent earthquakes and its sympathy with their plight;

2.Is deeply concerned by the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan and the potential spillover effects;

3.Expresses its grave concern that decades of extensive international aid have not generated any economic growth in Afghanistan; considers that the disbursement of EU funds to Afghanistan should be conditional upon the country’s cooperation in the return of Afghan nationals residing illegally in the EU;

4.Notes that the large-scale provision of EU development aid to Afghanistan has not had the desired results; demands that all aid to Afghanistan be suspended if the Afghan Government does not cooperate in the return to Afghanistan of Afghan citizens who are residing illegally in the EU;

5.Deplores the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan; decries the fact that the Taliban have denied girls post-primary education, banned women from numerous public places and restricted women’s employment to healthcare and primary education; is of the opinion that these highly restrictive norms have a very negative economic and social impact;

6.Calls for the EU to change its strategy and pursue technical cooperation and diplomacy with the aim of achieving concrete, visible results with regard to girls’ and women’s rights and their access to education;

7.Expresses deep concern about the consequences of mass migration by Afghans for the freedom and security of women and girls across Europe; notes that official statistics show that Afghans are disproportionately involved in the perpetration of sexual crimes throughout Europe;

8.Emphasises that direct technical cooperation between the EU and its Member States and Afghanistan is a prerequisite for the effective return of Afghans from EU Member States;

9.Encourages the Member States to make technical arrangements with Afghanistan in order to facilitate returns of Afghans;

10.Calls on Afghanistan to reintegrate returned Afghans;

11.Is concerned by the CJEU’s judgment of 4 October 2024, according to which gender and nationality are sufficient grounds for asylum; considers that this judgment will distort the overall purpose of asylum mechanisms, create an additional ‘pull effect’ and lead to unequal access to protection, as a certain group of people can be granted automatic preference in obtaining asylum; strongly condemns the fact that the EU’s highest court of law is changing asylum law in order to promote its own views on social justice;

12.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the European External Action Service, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, and the Taliban regime.