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EU joint statement on behalf of the EU Member States "Heart of Asia" 7th Ministerial Meeting

01.12.2017
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EU joint statement on behalf of the EU Member States "Heart of Asia" 7th Ministerial Meeting

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President Ashraf Ghani, President Aliyev, Ministers, Excellences, distinguished colleagues

I have the honour of speaking on behalf of the European Union and its Member States and the Kingdom of Norway replacing the EU High Representative Ms Federica Mogherini.

We sincerely thank the Republic of Azerbaijan for hosting this 7th Heart of Asia Ministerial. 

Last year, at the Brussels Conference on Afghanistan 75 partner countries and 26 International Organisations came together to reaffirm our shared commitment to Afghanistan. At Brussels, the international community pledged over 15 billion USD until 2020. Out of that, the EU and its Member States contribute 5.6 billion USD, making us the largest donor to Afghanistan. These pledges ensure our continued economic and political support for Afghanistan's reform process. As a co-host of the conference Afghanistan naturally remains high on the EU political agenda. 

The EU concretely followed up on commitments. We adopted a new EU Afghanistan Strategy on 16 October this year, focusing on four priority areas: promoting peace, stability and regional security; reinforcing democracy, the rule of law and human rights and promoting good governance and women empowerment; supporting economic and human development; addressing challenges related to migration.  Earlier this year, in August, the EU disbursed €100 million of on-budget assistance through its State-Building contract. The Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development between the EU and Afghanistan has been ratified by the Afghan government. It will provisionally apply as from today, and provides a formal basis for the bilateral relationship between the EU and Afghanistan. Finally, the EU has created a new position and has appointed a EU Special Envoy to complement at regional and international levels the work of the Kabul-based Head of EU Delegation. 

With this revamped capacity, the EU is ready to further support peace and economic development in Afghanistan and its wider region.

We have been encouraged by recent progress on regional economic cooperation. The RECCA conference that took place in Ashgabat last month saw the signing of the Lapis Lazuli Corridor Agreement between Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. Trade between India and Afghanistan is increasing both through the establishment of the Afghanistan-India air corridor and the opening of Chabahar Port; while connectivity and trade with Central Asia is also increasing. The EU supports regional cooperation between Afghanistan and Central Asia in the areas of border management; the regional fight against illegal trafficking of drugs and humans; Afghanistan's participation in the Central Asia Invest programme; and the revision of Afghanistan's export strategy.

We are encouraged by the results of the 2017 Afghanistan survey of the Asia Foundation: it shows that Afghans seem slightly more optimistic on their country's future and reforms undertaken by the Afghan government than last year. 

We commend the Afghan government for tackling corruption and improving governance, including women's political and economic empowerment. We will continue to focus our work on supporting the Afghan government in these efforts – in particular when it comes to the upcoming Parliamentary and Presidential elections in in 2018 and 2019. 

We are very concerned about the high level of violence throughout Afghanistan –against worshippers at mosques, against security forces and installations, including training facilities and military hospitals, against government personnel and perhaps most of all violence against regular Afghans – men, women and children – that are affected by conflict in so many ways.

Only a negotiated political settlement could be the solution to end the war in Afghanistan. An Afghan-owned and Afghan-led peace process, supported by the international community, holds the key to peace. The Kabul process on 25 January 2018 will present the next opportunity to collectively discuss, and develop a plan for action, a roadmap to peace. The EU stands ready to support this process.

Peace in Afghanistan is a shared interest that unites us all. A regional consensus and constructive contributions towards peace on the part of Afghanistan's neighbours, hold the key to ending violence. The Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process, with its six confidence-building measures, is one important forum where we can start to collectively address many of the aforementioned challenges that form the barrier to achieving peace in Afghanistan and stability throughout the region. 

Counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics are particularly important in this regard. The ongoing conflict is exacerbated by rising levels of opium production, which has dramatically increased compared to last year. This creates challenges for Afghanistan and the region in terms of public health, organized crime and funding for terrorist groups.  

Finally, the challenges of migration, returnees and displacement also need recognition and action. Peace and stability will eradicate their root causes. This makes us all stakeholders infinding a solution to the challenge of migration, in particular returnees from Pakistan and Iran. As for the EU, just this year, we have increased our support to the Afghan government for the return and sustainable reintegration of Afghans returning from the region.  

By supporting stability and focussing on improving the regional economic outlook the Heart of Asia - Istanbul Process, can help stabilize migration pressures by providing new hope and opportunities that may encourage people to contribute to their own country's stability and development as well as return to their countries of origin.

The EU and its Member States and the Kingdom of Norway look forward to continuing our support to the Heart of Asia and welcome the high level of participation from the region here today which underscores the importance of this process.

Category
Statements on behalf of the EU
Location

Baku, Azerbaijan

Editorial sections
EEAS
Asia
Afghanistan
Europe and Central Asia
Azerbaijan