Foreign Minister Kaag on working visit to Turkey
This afternoon Minister of Foreign Affairs Sigrid Kaag met with her Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, to discuss the developments in Afghanistan.
Ms Kaag started by thanking Turkey for its assistance with the evacuations from Afghanistan and for its indispensable role as host country for migrants and refugees.
Together with Qatar, Turkey is also playing an important role in the efforts to reopen Kabul airport and ensure that the airport is safe, secure and operational. This is essential in order to be able to bring back Dutch nationals and Afghans who have worked for the Netherlands, and to provide humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.
Ms Kaag said that the Netherlands is willing to contribute to the efforts to reopen the airport and has set aside €1 million for technical assistance. She emphasised the importance of international cooperation to support the Afghan people as effectively as possible, both in Afghanistan itself and the wider region.
The two ministers also talked about the future of Afghanistan and the wider region, and the situation regarding refugees and migrants. Ms Kaag emphasised that an inclusive political agreement offers the best opportunity to ensure the stability that the Afghan people, especially women and girls, need for a sustainable future.