EU Launches New Phase of Cooperation, Partnership with Afghanistan

AVA- The meeting of joint committee which was established under the EU- Afghanistan Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development (CAPD), co-chaired by Gunner Wiegand, Managing Director of Asia and the Pacific in the European External Action Service and Afghanistan’s Finance Minister, Eklil Hakimi.

“The Joint Committee discussed many areas of cooperation that have been reinforced as a result of the provisional entry into force of the CAPD on December 1, 2017 including, inter alia, human rights, gender equality including women’s rights and empowerment, development cooperation, trade and investment matters, migration, regional cooperation and connectivity,” EU said in a press release.

“They also addressed cooperation on natural resources and financial services, as well as the security situation in Afghanistan.”

According to the press release, the EU reaffirmed its strong support for democracy, the rule of law and human rights, and to promote good governance and the need for fighting corruption effectively.

“The EU stressed the importance of credible and timely elections in the country. Strengthening cooperation on migration through existing frameworks such as the Joint Way Forward was also discussed.”

The two sides addressed pressing humanitarian issues linked to the efficient delivery of aid to the people in need.

Senior representatives of the Afghan Ministries of Refugees and Repatriation, Women Affairs, Communication and Information Technology, Commerce, the Civil Aviation Authority, Da Afghanistan Bank, as well as the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the European Union participated in the meeting.

Ahead of the joint committee, the representatives of EU including Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini had a bilateral meeting with Afghan Finance Minister Hakimi, where they emphasised their strong commitment to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan.

The next meeting of the Joint Committee will be held in capital Kabul in 2019.