Afghan women in Kabul (Photo: AFP/VNA)

After hosting an emergency summit, Graghi said addressing the humanitarian crisis will require contact with the Taliban, but this does not equate to their recognition. 

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said Afghanistan is at a make-or-break moment. Without food or jobs, and without their rights protected, more and more Afghanis will flee their homes in search of a better life.

At the summit, South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in called for emergency international aid to prevent a humanitarian disaster and rebuild Afghanistan. South Korea pledged 1 billion USD and futher assistance for Afghanistan over the next 20 years.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida promised 200 million USD aid for Afghanistan this year, and said keeping economic activities and basic services going is critical to the Afghan people.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen announced a support package worth around 1 billion euros to avert a major humanitarian and socio-economic collapse in Afghanistan. The EU aid will be channeled through international organizations to directly benefit the Afghans, not through the Taliban government which has yet to gain recognition.