EU–Turkey refugee deal risks breaking European and international law

Agreements negotiated between Turkey and the EU that intend to return asylum seekers to Turkey should respect European and international law, argued Julian Lehmann in an interview with Al Jazeera on March 8. Not every return from Greece to Turkey would be illegal, but the ​“comprehensive, large-scale and fast-track” returns foreseen by the EU certainly would be, Lehmann said. The EU needs to invest in individual procedures that comply with the rule of law, should Greece want to return asylum seekers.