Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said on Friday that Spain will never recognise the Taliban government as long as his administration is in power, emphasizing that this stance supports Afghan women’s rights.
The minister made the statement during HearUs 2025 in Madrid, an international conference bringing together Afghan women activists, survivors, and human rights advocates.
Speaking in Madrid to around fifty Afghan women who have fled Taliban-ruled Afghanistanand now advocate for justice and inclusion, Albares described Spain’s stance as both a moral and diplomatic commitment.
“Spain remains firmly committed to the rights of Afghan women and that genuine peace cannot be achieved without their participation,” he said at the opening of the HearUs forum — which focuses on accountability for gender-based repression in Afghanistan.
In a clear repudiation of the Taliban rulers in Kabul, Albares stated: “I guarantee you that, as long as I am Spain’s Foreign Minister, there will never be recognition of the Taliban government, which is not legitimate,” The minister underlined that Spain will continue to support mechanisms for investigation and accountability against Taliban abuses.
The HearUs 2025 summit, organised in collaboration with the NGO Women For Afghanistan, brought together activists, civil society representatives and experts, including Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Afghanistan.
Delegates at the event emphasised that four years after the Taliban’s return to power, women and girls in Afghanistan face systemic exclusion from education, work and public life.
Albares framed the plight of Afghan women as part of a broader struggle for justice and human dignity.
He warned that failure in their struggle would weaken equality not only in Afghanistan but beyond its borders, echoing concerns voiced in recent UN briefings about the deepening humanitarian and rights crisis in the country.
Addressing the Afghan delegates directly, the minister lauded their resilience: “Nothing and no one can stop the drive of those who thirst for freedom,” affirming that their fight for justice “affects us all.”
