Zakharova: instead of preventing the problem of migration in Afghanistan, the EU was busy criticizing Russia

18 August 2021


Instead of dealing with security issues and solving the migration crisis related to the withdrawal of Western troops from Afghanistan, the European Union was busy looking for and inventing new Russian threats, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday on the "SolovievLive" YouTube channel.


"So these negotiations were supposed to be going on for how many months. Not only that, there should have been a plan in case of an urgent unforeseen development of the situation. Where is it? And I will tell you why the EU and the rest of the structures were not engaged in their direct responsibilities, the security of the entrusted region. They were busy berating Russia, busy looking for and inventing some imaginary Russian threat. And what we had talked about happened," Zakharova said.


On Tuesday, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said after an urgent video conference of EU foreign ministers on Afghanistan that the EU was ready to start a dialogue with the new Afghan authorities to prevent humanitarian and migration crises.


Commenting on Borrell's statement, Zakharova said: "I would like to point out that negotiations to prevent a migration collapse should have been held before the start of the migration collapse. That's the way it usually is."


She reminded that EU is a political structure that deals with the problem of migration among other things. "And it is this structure that Mr. Borrell represents. The experience is enormous. In the example of Libya, Syria and other countries of the Middle East and North Africa," the diplomat continued.


"Didn't they understand what would happen when they were withdrawing their contingents? We agreed with you a long time ago that when we say the EU, we mean NATO. And so the countries that are part of the EU were doing their mission as part of the coalition. They could not fail to understand what the situation would lead to," Zakharova pointed out.


"Humanitarian and political crisis"


The West is leaving behind another humanitarian and political crisis in Afghanistan as a legacy to the world and generations to come, Zakharova said.


"We are now seeing how once again the Western community, defending some of its own Western values, is leaving another crisis as a legacy to the world and future generations," she said. - "Before that there was Libya, Iraq, there was Syria that survived only thanks to the decisive actions of the Russian Federation and the very principles that were given by the president of our country, and many other regional problems. Now there is one more problem to add to them".


The diplomat said the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and the situation around the downing of people from US military transport planes demonstrate the West's true attitude towards human rights. "The next time we read all these multi-page reports that the Western community from the US, Britain to other EU and NATO countries prepare about human rights in the world, we should remember how they implement and respect human rights in one particular situation, because the person whose rights should be protected is not one, there are thousands. These are citizens of Afghanistan, these are citizens of other countries that are there," Zakharova added.

 

 

GSV "Russia - Islamic World"

Photo: Press Service of the Russian Foreign Ministry / TASS

Based on materials from TASS