Austria Proposes Deportation of Afghan Migrants via Uzbekistan amid Tougher Immigration Policies
European media have reported that the Austrian government is considering a plan whereby Afghan migrants would first be transferred to Uzbekistan before being sent back to Afghanistan. This move is part of Austria’s increasingly stringent immigration policies.
The newspaper Die Presse reported that Austrian officials are preparing an agreement with Uzbekistan to facilitate the implementation of this plan. The agreement is expected to be signed on May 7, coinciding with the visit of Austria’s Interior and Foreign Ministers to Tashkent.
The plan is based on the “third country” model, which Austrian officials say could bypass legal obstacles preventing direct deportations to Afghanistan. Gerhard Karner, Austria’s Interior Minister, stated that the measure would make the process of returning migrants “more effective and on a larger scale.”
However, reports indicate that Uzbekistan’s involvement in such a program may face challenges, including potential harm to the country’s international reputation. At the same time, human rights organizations have warned about the consequences of returning individuals to Afghanistan under Taliban rule, emphasizing serious concerns regarding human rights conditions and extensive restrictions, especially on women and certain social groups.
Austria is pursuing these actions as part of its intensified immigration policies, which have been implemented since last year following increased pressures from the migration crisis in Europe.
Previously, the Daily Mail reported in February that the European Union was considering a plan to return Afghan asylum seekers without residency rights to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. According to the report, Brussels, under pressure from some member states to curb irregular migration, has initiated contacts with Taliban authorities in Kabul to assess the feasibility of organizing return procedures.
Markus Lammert, a spokesperson for the European Commission, stated that the EU has conducted two “technical missions” to Afghanistan, the latest in January, aimed at examining the framework for readmission and how a potential return operation could be organized. These efforts come amid ongoing serious legal and practical challenges related to forcibly returning migrants to a country with an unstable political and legal situation.
