Afghan Taliban officials met secretly with European Union leaders in Brussels on June 23, 2026, to talk about sending rejected Afghan asylum seekers back to Afghanistan. This was the first direct meeting between the EU and Taliban officials, according to AP News.

Belgium gave five visas to the Taliban group so they could attend. This matters because the EU has never officially accepted the Taliban as Afghanistan's real government. Reuters reported the visa decision on June 22.

Why are they talking? Because many EU countries want to send Afghan asylum seekers back home — especially those convicted of crimes. About 20 member states are looking into this, according to 8am.media. But there's a problem: without Taliban cooperation, these deportations won't work. If you want to send someone back to Afghanistan, the Taliban — who control the country — have to agree to take them and process the paperwork.

Many people are upset about this. Human rights groups worry that sending people back could put them in danger, since the Taliban doesn't follow international human rights rules. Some EU lawmakers also say that even having talks with the Taliban gives them more legitimacy than the EU has ever granted. The Guardian reported on June 23 that criticism has been fierce.

The EU's official position hasn't changed much since 2021. Back then, EU leaders said they would only work with the Taliban if the group improved its record on human rights and let more people have a say in government. But in practice, EU countries have been struggling with large numbers of Afghan refugees, so some officials see working out a deportation agreement as necessary.

What the EU is trying to do is separate two things: talking about specific, practical problems like deportation, while not officially accepting the Taliban as a real government. It's like saying: we can work with you on this one issue, but that doesn't mean we recognize your authority more broadly.

What happened at the meeting has not been made public. These closed-door talks usually don't lead to quick announcements. If the two sides decide to move forward, there will probably be more meetings and possibly a written agreement about how deportations would work.

The biggest unanswered question is whether a real deportation system would actually protect people being sent back. It would need Taliban agreement, cooperation on paperwork, and some way to make sure returnees won't face harm. These are tough conditions given what we know about the Taliban's treatment of people. EU countries that want faster deportations have also been pushing to restrict migration overall. So the EU's leaders now have to figure out how to make a deal with a group they have never officially recognized, while their own lawmakers are watching closely and many are opposed.