CYIL vol. 10 (2019)

MARKÉTA KŘIŽÁKOVÁ CYIL 10 ȍ2019Ȏ high-level officials’ meetings and annual reporting to the UN General Assembly by the UNHCR. 79 The generality of the Compact is visible from its overall formulation. International cooperation and solidarity are referred to as principles to be realized, in particular through the establishment of the Global Refugee Forum and special Support Platforms. The concrete commitments will be undertaken at these fora. However, states are not legally bound to undertake such commitments, nor to participate in these fora meetings. Sensitive issues of the Compact, such as resettlement, are also not very concrete. This is the reason why Gammeltoft-Hansen concludes, for example, that the Global Compact will not have any normative impact in the future, since its form is not only legally binding, but also its content is not sufficiently specific. Therefore, the Compact will probably not serve as a basis for a new international convention in refugee law. 80 Hence the Compact is a purely political document, that actually declares itself. Is it possible to find out how the terms of international cooperation or solidarity are perceived by the states (and other actors involved in the Compact’s adoption) nowadays? Based on the wording of the Compact, it clearly states the objective is to strengthen international cooperation and solidarity with refugees and host states. Solidarity is seen as a help to the host country in order to cope with a large number of refugees (and possibly migrants), in particular by strengthening its national capacities. The exceptions are resettlement programs and voluntary returns that focus the assistance outside the territory of the host state. Cooperation and solidarity should be demonstrated through financial, material and other technical support, as well as by providing know-how and information sharing. The problem of responsibility-sharing by the resettlement of refugees, which is a highly debated issue in the European region, is addressed in the Compact through the intention to extend participation in resettlement programmes, but no concrete commitments have been made. It has not been determined which states will participate in the resettlement programs, how many refugees should be resettled and under what conditions. This indicates what Gammeltoft-Hansen calls the status quo , it means the preservation of what has been achieved in the past. 81 The language of the Compact therefore implies that states have not significantly shifted from their positions expressed during the preparation of the Convention. While the principle of international cooperation and solidarity is perceived as necessary, as it is recognized that the host states need the assistance of the international community, they do not accept any legal obligations and their assistance thus remains purely voluntary. International cooperation can take various forms, including the resettlement of refugees to the territory of other countries. However, the Compact focuses on the forms that should help the host state strengthen its own national capacities. There is no significant shift in the perception of international cooperation and solidarity. While states realize that there is a big gap in the fairness of responsibility-sharing in refugee international law, they do not want to change their obligations. On the other hand, the Compact can be viewed positively at least, because the states have claimed allegiance to the principle of international cooperation. This is not an insignificant point in today’s uncertain times, when extremist

79 UNHCR, Global compact , ibid, pp. 20-21, chap. IV. 80 GAMMELTOFT-HANSEN, ibid, pp. 609-610. 81 GAMMELTOFT-HANSEN, ibid, p. 610.

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