Meeting online, representatives of PES member parties and organisations, NGOs and others discussed key foreign policy issues facing the EU. On the agenda: the situation in Afghanistan, the EU-Eastern Partnership, energy pricing, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Meeting Chair Kati Piri, Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, said:
“The situation in Afghanistan is extremely worrying. More than half of the population is now at serious risk of starvation. The deterioration of the socio-economic situation is happening amidst a pandemic, as winter approaches. At the same time, the Taliban is targeting those who have worked with western forces.
“Socialists and democrats understand the huge hardship the Afghan people race. The High-Level Forum convened by EU High Representative Josep Borrell and Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson last month stepped-up the conversation on coordinated, European, humanitarian support. We urge Member States not to lose this momentum.
“Together, as Europeans, we must be ready to help and must work for safe and legal pathways to protection for those at risk. Those people who have helped build Afghanistan over the past twenty years must not be forgotten.”
The High-Level Forum on Providing Protection to Afghans at Risk, convened by EU High Representative Josep Borrell and Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson on 7 October, led to the EU pledging a € 1 billion support package for the Afghan people. Member states should also work together on the basis of shared solidarity to ensure Afghans in need have access to safe and legal pathways to protection.
The meeting also discussed the challenges in Europe’s eastern neighbourhood ahead of the upcoming EU-EaP Summit taking place in December. One year since the stolen elections in Belarus, progressives continue to back stronger EU sanctions against the Belarusian government and action to protect fundamental rights at the EU external border.
Participants of the Foreign Policy Network raised concerns about soaring energy prices, which are having a significant impact on citizens across Europe. The EU must lessen its dependency on foreign-sourced fossil fuels and increase its energy security through expanded renewable generation, the Network agreed.
The meeting also underlined the progressive family’s firm support for the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and called on all parties to respect and protect state institutions, resume constructive dialogue, and take steps to advance progress on the EU integration path.
