Compatibility of the Safe Third CountryConcept with International Refugee Law andits Application to Turkey

Abstract

The safe third country concept emerged at the end of 1980s as an antidote for theprotection challenges associated with the travel routes of refugees. However, practicesinvolving safe third country transfers have ended up rendering refugees’ access toasylum even more difficult. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate, basedon the example of Turkey, the challenges in refugee protection that the safe thirdcountry transfers create. The article begins with an overview of Turkey’s situationwith respect to trans-border migratory dynamics and Turkey’s areas of engagementwith international law on migration and asylum. Then, the evolution of the safethird country concept is analyzed with special reference to contributions madeby Turkey. Finally, the current state of affairs and future prospects are discussedin view of Turkey’s position as a safe third country with respect to EU countries, particularly with the execution of the EU-Turkey Statement of March 2016 andthe EU-Turkey Readmission Agreement. In conclusion, with the execution ofthese two instruments, Turkey seems to have compromised its position regardingthe conditions of the safe third country concept. Considering the current state ofaffairs, wherein the EU seems determined to make full use of the safe third countryconcept with respect to Turkey, Turkey’s interpretation and attitude will continueto be crucial for the evolution of the safe third country concept, on account of thescale of transit asylum and migration flows through Turkey