TURKEY’S STANCE ON SOUTH KOREAN REFUGEES: BALANCING LEGAL OBLIGATIONS AND DIPLOMATIC TIES

 By Mekakannika. K

On the first day of the SMUN conference, the chair brought to the delegates’ attention a crisis: South Koreans fleeing their country and seeking refuge elsewhere due to fallout from North Korea’s nuclear weapons testing. This urgent issue fully had all the countries engaged in finding a solution. Under the 1951 Refugee Convention, Turkey allows refugees only from Europe due to its geographical limitations. The delegate of Turkey, thus stated that they are not legally obligated to accept refugees from South Korea. However, Turkey is willing to provide temporary refuge to South Koreans under this dire circumstance. The delegate also stated that Turkey plans to hold North Korea accountable for committing such an act as this has been a recurring problem for many years.

There have been ongoing diplomatic efforts to persuade North Korea to abandon its nuclear program, but these have been met with limited success. Moreover, North Korea’s nuclear weapon development and testing activities violate the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874. These resolutions demand North Korea to refrain from nuclear or missile tests and return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), from which it withdrew from in 2003 and hasn’t returned to since. Additionally, North Korea’s resistance to international inspections and its attempts to avoid financial sanctions further violate these resolutions.

The delegate also claimed that Turkey, having a partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and being a part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)—both of which South Korea also has strong relations with—considers South Korea an ally nation. “Turkey is in a position of military responsibility to hold North Korea accountable” said the delegate of Turkey.