scholarly journals Soft Law in EU Migration Cooperation with Associated Countries – A Comparative Perspective

Author(s):  
Anna Wolf

The war in Syria transformed the temporary stay of refugees in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon into a protracted situation. These countries represent strategic partners to the EU in the governance of transit migration. The EU adopted three non-binding bilateral arrangements: The Turkey Statement, the Jordan Compact and the Lebanon Compact. This thesis pursued the following research question: What are the legal effects of the Turkey Statement, the Jordan Compact and the Lebanon Compact on the relations between the EU and these three associated countries in terms of migration and how do they impact the situation of Syrian refugees hosted in these countries? The Compacts had facilitating and strengthening legal effects on the association links with the EU. In contrast, the Turkey Statement had transformative and multilevel legal effects that contributed to an informalization of relations. This study provided one approach to the lack of legal research on the external dimension of EU governance.

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Sirkeci

Doğu ve güney komşuları üzerinde gelen göç akınlarının ve üye ülkeler arasındaki göçlerin artışıyla Avrupa Birliği (AB) en büyük krizlerinden birini yaşamaktadır. Avrupa’daki en ana tartışma konuları arasında Avrupa’ya göçü ve AB içindeki göçü sınırlamak ve üye ülkeler arasında mülteci kotası ve külfet paylaşımına yapılan itirazlar yer aldı. Bu krizde Türkiye anahtar ülke olarak ortaya çıktı ve ülkedeki büyük Suriyeli mülteci nüfusu ve bu nüfusun Avrupa’ya gitmesini engellemesi karşılığında vaat edilen milyarlarca Avro nedeniyle tartışmaların odağında yer aldı. Suriye krizi 4,8 milyon mülteci yarattı ve 2016 yılı sonu itibariyle bunların 2,8 milyonu Türkiye’de ikamet etmekteydi. Suriyeli mültecilere karşı cömert tavrıyla Türkiye güvenli bir ülke olarak tescil edilmiş oldu. Bu, hikayenin daha karanlık bir başka yüzünü gölgelemektedir. Çünkü aynı ülkenin vatandaşları 1980 askeri darbesinden bu yana milyonu aşkın sığınma başvurusu yaptılar. Ülkenin bugünkü şartları ve yeni veriler, Türkiye’den AB’ye yönelen daha çok mülteci akını olacağını gösteriyor. ABSTRACT IN ENGLISHTurkey’s refugees, Syrians and refugees from Turkey: a country of insecurityThe European Union (EU) has faced one of its biggest crises with the rise of population inflows through its Eastern and Southern neighbours as well as movements within the Union. In 2016, the main debate that dominated Europe was on restricting migration within and into the EU along with concerns and objections to the refugee quota systems and the sharing of the burden among member states. Turkey emerged as a ‘gate keeper’ in this crisis and has since been at the centre of debates because of the large Syrian refugee population in the country and billions of Euros it was promised to prevent refugees travelling to Europe. The Syrian crisis produced over 4.8 million refugees with over 2.8 million were based in Turkey by the end of 2016. Turkey with its generous support for Syrian refugees has been confirmed as a ‘country of security’. This shadows the darker side of affairs as the very same country has also produced millions of asylum seekers since the 1980 military coup. Current circumstances and fresh evidence indicate that there will be more EU bound refugees coming through and from Turkey. 


Author(s):  
Jared Sonnicksen

AbstractThe European Union remains an ambivalent polity. This uncertainty complicates the assessment of its democratic and federal quality. Drawing on comparative federalism research can contribute not only to making sense of whether, or rather which kind of federalism the EU has developed. It can also enable addressing such a compounded, but necessary inquiry into the federal and democratic character of the EU and how to ascertain which type of democratic government for which type of federal union may be appropriate. The article first elaborates a framework to assess the dimensions of federal and democratic government, drawing on comparative federalism research to delineate basic types of federal democracy. Here the democratic dimension of government is taken as referring primarily to the horizontal division of powers (among ‘branches’) of government, the federal dimension to the vertical division of powers (among ‘levels’) of governments. The framework is applied to the government of the EU in order to gauge its own type(s) of division of power arrangements and the interlinkage between them. Finally, the discussion reflects on whether or rather how the EU could comprise a federal democracy, especially in light of recent crisis challenges and subsequent institutional developments in EU governance.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Μαρία-Νεφέλη Βακουλή

Η παρούσα διατριβή αναλύει το ζήτημα της προστασίας των θεμελιωδών δικαιωμάτων της ΕΕ με ειδική αναφορά στον ρόλο του Δικαστηρίου της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης (ΔΕΕ) και της νομολογίας του στα πλαίσια της ευρωπαϊκής διακυβέρνησης. Η νομολογία του ΔΕΕ περί την προστασία των θεμελιωδών δικαιωμάτων αναλύεται με επίκεντρο το Δικαστήριο ως θεσμικό όργανο της ΕΕ και διερευνάται ο ρόλος του ΔΕΕ στην επίτευξη της ευρωπαϊκής ολοκλήρωσης. Εξετάζει την αντιμετώπιση από το ΔΕΕ των ζητημάτων περί το άσυλο με ιδιαίτερη έμφαση στη νομολογία μετά τη Λισαβόνα. Επιπλέον, η παρούσα διατριβή εξετάζει τον ρόλο του ΔΕΕ στα πλαίσια σύγχρονων ζητημάτων σε ευρωπαϊκό και διεθνές επίπεδο, όπως η πρόσφατη απόφαση του Γερμανικού Συνταγματικού Δικαστηρίου (PSPP judgement), η Κοινή Δήλωση ΕΕ-Τουρκίας και η προσχώρηση της ΕΕ στην ΕΣΔΑ. Το Μέρος Ι, «Θεμελιώδη δικαιώματα της ΕΕ και ΔΕΕ», προσδιορίζει το αντικείμενο της έρευνας και θέτει το επιλεγμένο θεωρητικό πλαίσιο. Αναλύει την προστασία των θεμελιωδών δικαιωμάτων της ΕΕ από το ΔΕΕ μέσω της θεωρίας του Ιστορικού θεσμισμού. Επικεντρώνεται στον θεσμικό ρόλο του Δικαστηρίου στη θέσπιση της έννομης τάξης της ΕΕ. Η Συνθήκη της Λισαβόνας και ο Χάρτης των Θεμελιωδών Δικαιωμάτων της ΕΕ αναλύονται ως κρίσιμες στιγμές στην πορεία της νομολογίας του Δικαστηρίου. Αναλύεται το θεμελιώδες δικαίωμα στο άσυλο όπως αυτό προστατεύεται από το άρθρο 18 του Χάρτη Θεμελιωδών Δικαιωμάτων της ΕΕ. Το Μέρος II, «Προστασία των Θεμελιωδών Δικαιωμάτων σε καιρό κρίσης», πραγματεύεται την δικαστική προστασία των θεμελιωδών δικαιωμάτων της ΕΕ στο πλαίσιο της προσφυγικής/μεταναστευτικής κρίσης και παράσχει μια λεπτομερή περιγραφή της κρίσης ως φαινομένου με ισχυρή δυναμική που δύναται να επηρεάσει τη διαδικασία της ευρωπαϊκής ολοκλήρωσης. Η διατριβή περιλαμβάνει ολοκληρωμένη επισκόπηση της νομολογίας του Δικαστηρίου βάσει έρευνας μέσω της πλατφόρμας EUR-Lex αναφορικά με τη νομοθεσία για το ΚΕΣΑ και τον κανονισμό του Δουβλίνου στα πλαίσιο της διαδικασίας για το προδικαστικό ερώτημα. Εισάγονται οι έννοιες του «ισορροπημένου δικαστικού ακτιβισμού» (balanced judicial activism) και της «αιτιολογημένης δικαστικής παθητικότητας» (justifiable judicial passivism) που θέτουν τα όρια στην λήψη αποφάσεων του ΔΕΕ. Και για τις δύο έννοιες, ο «κίνδυνος» για την ευρωπαϊκή ολοκλήρωση είναι ζωτικής σημασίας. Τέλος, γίνεται αναφορά στη δικαστική αλληλεπίδραση μεταξύ του ΔΕΕ και του ΕΔΔΑ και τίθεται το ερώτημα εάν η αλληλεπίδραση αυτή αρκεί για να εξασφαλιστεί η συνοχή στην προστασία των θεμελιωδών δικαιωμάτων στην Ευρώπη ή αν απαιτείται το επόμενο βήμα, ήτοι η προσχώρηση της ΕΕ στην ΕΣΔΑ.


2009 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilia Korkea-Aho

New modes of governance are proliferating at all levels, most prominently in the EU. One main characteristic of new governance is adjustability and revisability in the form of soft law. The non-binding nature of soft law is said to contribute to flexibility and diversity in Member States and to secure national autonomy. However, this article argues that while soft law may not be legally binding, it nevertheless has legal effects that throw flexibility and diversity of national action into doubt. Beginning by demonstrating that soft law may have discernible effects on practices in Member States, at the same time restricting Member State choices, the article goes on to develop a categorisation of those effects and to document them in detail. These are: judicial recognition by the European courts, explicit terms of soft law instruments, which demand special types of national implementing measures, the role played by non-state actors, and hybrid forms of regulatory instruments comprising soft and hard law provisions. The analysis shows a need to add variety to existing research on EU soft law, which has traditionally focused on the role of the judiciary in giving legal effects to soft law. Instead, we should be more attentive to the other three factors when discussing soft law. Besides the more holistic approach, research should also analyse soft law in a more case-specific manner in order to fully grasp the implications of choice of soft law in a domestic legal system.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (15) ◽  
pp. 78-94
Author(s):  
Giorgio Oikonomou

The purpose of this study is to explore the evolution of EU administration by focusing and critically examining the role of EU agencies in advancing the European integration project. The research question deals with identifying the factors that account for the formulation of EU agencies and the reasons behind their sharp increase in numbers since the 2000s. The tasks are to analyse critical EU agencies’ parameters such as their typology, the policy area they deal with, origin of their resources and funding, and their output. In addition, transparency and accountability issues accompanying the proliferation of EU agencies are also considered. Emphasis is placed on the evolution of the European administration as expressed by the establishment of various types of agencies since 1975 thereafter. Methodologically, the research utilizes quantitative data based on annual EU budgets as well as official reports and policy papers issued by main EU institutions (European Commission, European Parliament, European Court of Auditors) and agencies, analyzing them from a historical perspective. As a result, it is argued that the proliferation of EU agencies has advanced the process of European integration, namely the EU enlargement and expansion in new policy areas following successive reforms of the Treaties. However, concerns regarding accountability and transparency issues remain in place.


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