A coalition of women’s rights activists from Afghanistan has called on European Union leaders to immediately halt any engagement with Taliban over migrant deportations, warning that such talks would amount to a betrayal of Afghan women.
In an open letter addressed to senior EU officials, including Roberta Metsola and Ursula von der Leyen, the activists said that proposed “technical talks” with Taliban representatives were not a neutral administrative step but a “deliberate political act.”
“This engagement constitutes normalization,” the letter states. “And for Afghan women, it is a betrayal.”
The letter follows reports that the European Union is considering hosting Taliban representatives in Brussels to discuss the return of Afghan nationals who lack legal residency in Europe. According to those reports, the discussions would focus on logistical questions, including flight arrangements, capacity at Kabul’s airport and the treatment of returnees.
The activists argue that such engagement risks conferring legitimacy on a regime they describe as responsible for “systematic and institutionalized oppression.” Since the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, they note, women have been barred from education, excluded from most employment and largely erased from public life — conditions they characterize as “gender apartheid.”
The letter also raises legal and ethical concerns about deportations to Afghanistan under current conditions. For many Afghans, the authors write, return would not be safe but would expose them to “repression and systemic rights violations.”
“Engaging with those enforcing this system while claiming to defend human rights represents a profound moral contradiction,” the letter says.
The activists warn that pursuing such talks could undermine international human rights standards and signal that the European Union’s commitments to protect vulnerable populations are conditional. They describe the move as a short-term political calculation with potentially long-term consequences for global security.
The letter calls on the European Union to cancel any planned talks with the Taliban, reaffirm its commitment to Afghan women, halt deportations under current conditions and consult directly with Afghan women’s organizations in policymaking.
The appeal follows earlier reporting that EU officials, despite concerns from human rights groups and United Nations refugee agencies, are exploring the possibility of inviting a Taliban delegation to Europe. A diplomatic source cited in an AFP report said the aim would be to hold discussions before the summer, with a “technical” delegation representing the Taliban.
