A presentation panel on the publication entitled "A New Issue on Turkey-EU Relations: Refugee Issue and Turkey-EU Cooperation" was held at TOBB Plaza with the participation of various experts in the field on 14 September 2017. The opening remarks of the panel were realised by IKV Secretary-General Assoc. Prof. Çiğdem Nas and editor of the publication and Dokuz Eylül University Lecturer Prof. Yaprak Gülcan. Later, those who contributed to the publication revealed information about their activities in two different sessions. Finally, Hacettepe University Director of Migration and Political Research Centre Assoc. Prof. M. Murat Erdoğan made the closing presentation.

IKV Secretary-General Assoc. Prof. Nas reminded that Turkey-EU refugee cooperation continues despite various difficulties in her opening speech, emphasising IKV's recent works in that respect and noting that IKV has further focused on refugee cooperation lately. Following Assoc. Prof. Nas, Prof. Gülcan shared current data on the refugee issue with the participants. Prof. Gülcan reminded that the human dimension is of utmost importance and that in the current conjuncture, the issue is being thoroughly scrutinised through figures and statistics in that respect.  She also highlighted the ultimate need for Turkey and the EU of forging a common policy in this area.

Following the opening remarks, the refugee issue was addressed through European values ??and the chair of the session was Prof. Sedef Akgüngör from Dokuz Eylül University. In the first session, MEF University Lecturer Assoc. Prof. Beken Saatcioglu discussed the EU's concerns over the values-interests dilemma. Assoc. Prof. Saatçioğlu suggested that the refugee crisis was addressed by the EU in a result-oriented and interest-based manner; she argued that this leads to backsliding in the areas of rights and the value of solidarity. Following Assoc. Prof. Saatçioğlu’s intervention, Bahçeşehir University Lecturer Assoc. Prof. Selcen Öner presented her views with respect to the relation of the rise of far-right political tendencies in the EU to the refugee issue.  Regarding the latest IKV publication which was presented during the panel, Assoc. Prof. Öner suggested that the far-right is represented in Austria more strongly than in Germany. Finally, Assoc. Prof. Öner underlined the importance taken by the concept of a so-called Fortress Europe along with the rise of far-right political parties which ought to be closely scrutinised.

The last speaker of the first session was Marmara University Lecturer Assist. Dr. Aslı Sirin Öner who gave information regarding EU-based temporary protection rules. Assist. Dr.  Öner argued that the temporary protection system was actually by-passed.  She emphasised that this was caused by the lack of political will and solidarity.

In the second session of the panel, another editor of the publication, Prof. Yeşim Kuştepeli from Dokuz Eylül University, discussed   refugee cooperation in the context of Turkey's EU accession process. The first speaker of the second session was Marmara University Lecturer Assoc. Prof. Yonca Özer who assessed the EU's conditionality policies on Turkey from the perspective of the refugee issue, with a comprehensive analysis of all aspects of Turkey-EU relations. Assoc. Prof. Özer pointed out that in the first period of refugee cooperation, the EU softened its conditionality policies applied to Turkey, and that this period reflected in the visa liberation dialogue. Despite the fact that refugee cooperation was dealt outside of the framework of accession negotiations, she argued that it nonetheless did affect these negotiations.

Dokuz Eylül University Lecturer Assist. Dr. Burçak Müge Vural revealed information regarding astudy on the effects of Syrian asylum seekers on the Turkish economy.  She underlined that the policies applied to the economic impact of migration should be regional and /or sectoral. The consequences of forced migration are uncertain; Istanbul and Kocaeli in the industrial cities of the immigration industry has been absorbed to reduce unemployment, Southeast region in the agricultural sector was found to increase unemployment.

The last speaker of the second session IKV Researcher Ahmet Ceran began his presentation by referring to the current international law and governance mechanisms, indicating that they are insufficient to solve the mass migration phenomenon that reaches unique levels. He noted the importance of strengthening administrative capacity, governance mechanisms to make alternative models such as Turkey-EU refugee cooperation more effective; and that a more objective and law-based approach should be adopted when it comes to establishing a secure third country status.  IKV Researcher Ceran Academy emphasised the importance of an atmosphere in which civil society and international organisations can observe migration management processes more closely and transparently.

Following the panel sessions, Assoc. Prof. Erdoğan made a comprehensive presentation on how the refugee crisis was handled in Turkey and the EU. He underlined that Turkey-EU refugee cooperation should not be damaged by approaches that would lead to a pragmatic correction and harm Turkey's earned Europeanness.