The issue of differentiation and discrimination in the EU immigration and asylum policy

Abstract

Despite the fact that principles of equality and non-discrimination are widely incorporated in provisions of international, regional and national law, the problem of inequality remains one of the most acute. In almost all countries of the world, one can find examples of discriminatory attitudes towards certain groups of citizens. Discrimination is often masked by differentiation of legal regulation, which acts as a lawful instrument for establishing differences in the scope of rights of certain groups of citizens. The purpose of this article is to determine to what extent the differentiated approach within the framework of the EU immigration and asylum policy is justified and whether it is a manifestation of discrimination. In recent years, the implementation of immigration and asylum policy by EU countries has been accompanied by increased differentiation in relation to certain foreign citizens, including applicants for international protection. In particular, this is manifested in the establishment of a special procedure for entry and granting of international protection for forced migrants from Ukraine, the introduction of restrictions on the issuance of visas and entry for Russian citizens, the establishment of a special procedure for providing international protection in situations of instrumentalisation of migrants, etc. According to the author, these examples of differentiation raise questions in terms of compliance with current international law and EU law. In this case, there is no evidence that the differentiated approach to foreign citizens pursues a legitimate goal, and the grounds for such differentiation are reasonable and justified. Consequently, in the situations indicated, the differentiated approach has acquired the characteristics of discrimination.