Germany seeks agreement with Taliban to take back convicted Afghan migrants, interior minister says

Published connected 04/07/2025 - 12:39 GMT+2•Updated 12:45

Germany wants to discuss a nonstop statement pinch nan Taliban to return backmost Afghan nationals group for deportation, according to Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt.

"My thought is that we make agreements straight pinch Afghanistan to alteration repatriations," said successful an question and reply connected Thursday pinch nan play news magazine, Focus.

"We still request 3rd parties to behaviour talks pinch Afghanistan. This cannot stay a imperishable solution."

In August, Germany resumed flying convicted Afghan nationals backmost to Afghanistan aft suspending deportations aft nan Taliban returned to powerfulness successful 2021.

Berlin said those flights were facilitated pinch nan support of "key location partners". But now, Germany wants to do this straight successful practice pinch nan Taliban successful Kabul.

In nan Thursday interview, Dobrindt said Berlin is besides successful interaction pinch Damascus successful a bid to scope an statement connected nan deportation of Syrian migrants convicted of crimes successful Germany.

Dobrindt represents nan blimpish Christian Social Union (CSU), nan Bavarian sister statement of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Merz has pledged to deport group to Syria and Afghanistan, arsenic good arsenic extremity exile admittance programmes for erstwhile section unit of German agencies successful nan latter.

The admittance programmes were group up aft nan Taliban takeover was said to beryllium a nonstop threat to their lives owed to imaginable retaliation.

UN urges against 'forcible returns' to Afghanistan

Migration was a cardinal rumor arsenic Germans headed to nan polls to ballot successful February's threat national elections pursuing nan emergence of nan acold correct and respective high-profile attacks by migrants.

Syrians and Afghans dress up nan 2 largest groups of asylum seekers successful Germany, pinch 76,765 Syrians and 34,149 Afghans applying for asylum past year, according to charismatic figures.

On Friday, nan United Nations criticised plans to onslaught a woody pinch nan Taliban to return migrants to Afghanistan.

Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for nan United Nations Human Rights Office, told reporters successful Geneva it was "not due to return group to Afghanistan."

"We person been documenting continuing quality authorities violations successful Afghanistan," she said, highlighting terrible restrictions connected women's authorities and executions.

Arafat Jamal of nan UN's exile agency (UNHCR) successful Kabul said his organisation still had a "non-return advisory" successful spot for Afghanistan.

"In different words ... nan conditions connected nan crushed are not yet fresh for returns," he said. "We impulse countries not to forcibly return to Afghanistan."

Germany does not recognise nan Taliban authorities since its takeover successful 2021 aft NATO troops withdrew from nan state and maintains nary charismatic negotiated ties pinch Kabul.

On Friday, Russia became nan first state successful nan world to formally recognise nan Taliban authorities and found afloat negotiated links pinch Kabul.

Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi stated that he hoped nan move would service arsenic an illustration to different countries, but it was criticised by guidance figures and quality authorities groups.