Legalisation of Pushback Procedure in the Wake of the Belarus-European Union Border Crisis

Abstract

The principle of non-refoulement has been a part of international law for decades. Recent states’ practices have come to undermine this rule by engaging in pushback in the face of the migrant crisis. The author examines the legality of the pushback procedure as a part of the self-defence principle or as a new customary international law rule, especially if a state is under a hybrid attack as was in the case of the EU-Belarus border crisis. This article aims to assess the law and policy regarding the pushback procedure in light of a new era of hybrid warfare.