As EU Officials Speak of 'Moral Duty', Bloc's States Reluctant to Take in Afghan Migrants - Sputnik International

Several EU officials, including EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, have suggested that the bloc's member states must settle refugees potentially arriving from Afghanistan, but such an idea seemingly does not enjoy backing even among the strongest supporters of accommodating as many migrants as necessary in the past.

    "This resettlement of vulnerable people is of utmost importance. It is our moral duty", EU Commission head von der Leyen said on 21 August and called on G7 members to discuss creating "legal and safe routes" for Afghan people running from the Taliban*, poverty, and hardship in Afghanistan. EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson in turn warned that Europe "should not wait until people stand at our external border".

However, EU states fatigued by the events of the 2015 exodus of people from the Middle East and North Africa, especially Syria and Libya, learned a different lesson from those times. According to a German diplomatic memo obtained by the AP, instead of struggling with the migrant influx, EU interior ministers mulled providing timely humanitarian assistance to Afghans so they wouldn't come in the first place...

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