The developments in Afghanistan are currently the centre of international attention. In order to discuss their collaboration and support during the ongoing crisis, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg and Minister of the Interior Karl Nehammer initiated a joint videoconference with the three European partner countries Germany, Denmark and Greece as well as Afghanistan’s Central Asian neighbours.
The dialogue with Tajikistan and Turkmenistan focussed on issues of security, migration and humanitarian aid.
Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg emphasised:
The crisis in Afghanistan is not something taking place only between us – the West – and Afghanistan. It has the potential to pull the entire region into its vortex. In this situation, it is vital for us to establish contact with all of the partners in the region, to reach out to them and jointly explore the next steps that we must take together. We cannot and certainly will not abandon Afghanistan and the region.
We have a very clear common interest. We want the situation in Afghanistan to stabilise, and to keep Afghanistan from becoming a black hole in terms of security policy. We cannot wait to respond until the problem manifests itself at Europe’s external borders.
In addition to security and migration-policy considerations, the participants of the virtual conference also conferred about the humanitarian situation on the ground.
The people in the region clearly need our help right now. We are not just generating empty phrases here today – we have very specific offerings,
said Foreign Minister Schallenberg.
Last week Austria provided 18 million euros in emergency aid – the largest single emergency aid package. The funds are primarily being used to support the most vulnerable groups in the region, especially women and girls.
In this context, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg noted:
We are helping where aid is most urgently needed, namely on site.
Minister of the Interior Karl Nehammer emphasised the need to jointly fight irregular migration, organised crime and human trafficking. In the common fight against terrorism, collaborating with the Central Asian governments is also extremely important:
40% of Afghans belong to ethnic groups that live immediately to the north. There are many shared interests within the region.
