EU Reconfirms Support for Afghanistan

Jakarta: The European Union (EU) reconfirmed on Tuesday its long-standing solidarity and partnership with the people of Afghanistan, pledging support of €1.2 billion over the period 2021–2025 in both long-term and emergency assistance at the 2020 Afghanistan Conference "Peace, Prosperity and Self-Reliance".
 
"With intra-Afghan peace negotiations having started, but terrible violence still causing great suffering for the Afghan people, Afghanistan is at a crossroads. The Afghan people can count on the European Union's support for a prosperous and peaceful future for their country, but our support relies on democracy, human rights, and social progress being protected," EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, said in a press release on Tuesday.
 
This assistance will support implementation of the second Afghanistan National Peace and Development Framework covering the period of 2021-2025. The EU's support will also help to address growing poverty levels in Afghanistan in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. 

Alongside development support, the EU will also continue to provide impartial, life-saving humanitarian assistance, boosting the coronavirus response as well as assisting victims of conflict and forced displacement, including with emergency food provision, protection services to address gender-based violence, the education of children, as well as advocacy for respect of International Humanitarian Law by all parties to the conflict.
 
In 2016, the EU similarly pledged Afghanistan €1.2 billion euros over a four-year period. Actual payments in 2016–2020 exceeded €1.75 billion. 
 
Afghanistan is the largest beneficiary of EU development assistance in the world. EU support aims to preserve the political and development achievements of the last 19 years and is guided by strong democratic and human rights principles.
 
The EU has been among the most generous humanitarian donors to Afghanistan. Total EU humanitarian assistance in the country since 1994 amounts to almost €1 billion.
 
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