Bordering preferences in the EU and the externalization of the refugee crisis

Official URL: https://risc01.sabanciuniv.edu/record=b2748973_(Table of contents)

In the last ten years, the European Union (EU) has faced two major migration crises. The EU, which was criticized for its closed borders and externalization approaches toward Syrian refugees in 2015, adopted a different approach to refugees from Ukraine by implementing an open door policy. This thesis compares the policy responses of EU member states to the Syrian and Ukrainian refugees and focuses on how refugees are treated in both cases. The geographical location of member states and the ’identity’ of refugees have a significant impact on shaping the response to the refugee crisis at the EU level. To prove this, using the theory of Liberal Intergovernmentalism, it is explained how member state preferences and intergovernmental bargains work, and how this process turns into policy implementations in both cases. The thesis provides empirical evidence from EU Commission reports, UNCHR data, EU data, surveys, and statements. The findings show that the preferences and bargaining of the member states at the EU level are subject-specific and that the responses may vary according to different crises. Geographical location and identity, as important determinants of domestic policy, influence member states’ international bargaining positions at the EU level and lead to differences in the EU’s policy responses to the Syrian and Ukrainian refugee crises.