France is holding technical talks with Afghanistan's Taliban administration, which calls itself the Islamic Emirate, to return Afghan nationals living in France without legal immigration status. French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez confirmed the talks in parliament on Monday.
"We are trying to obtain the possibility to return a certain number of Afghans who are in an irregular situation. These are technical discussions," Nunez told lawmakers, adding that other European countries, including Germany, were pursuing similar arrangements. He said some Afghan nationals could pose a threat to public order and that deporting them was a government priority.
According to sources, France began contacts with Kabul on the issue in early October. Although Paris does not recognise the Taliban administration or have diplomatic relations with it, it has joined around 20 EU countries, among them Germany, Belgium and Sweden, in efforts to speed up returns of Afghans, particularly those convicted of crimes.
The talks have drawn criticism from some French lawmakers and human rights groups. Lea Balage El Mariky, a lawmaker from the Ecologists party, accused the government of moving towards normalising ties with an administration that restricts women and girls.
A meeting in Brussels in June between a Taliban delegation and representatives of 15 EU countries on irregular migration and deportations was also criticised, and in September the UN human rights chief, Volker Turk, called for an end to forced returns to Afghanistan.