EU Court of Justice: Sufficient security necessary across entire territory for designation as 'safe country of origin'
In the ruling made by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg, it was established that when an EU nation labels a third state as a secure nation of origin in asylum law, this designation should apply uniformly across the entirety of that third state. This decision came as a response to a case involving Moldova, which was deemed a safe country of origin by the Czech Republic, with the exception of the Transnistria region.
In this specific instance, a Czech court sought guidance on an asylum case and was interested in understanding if a third state loses its safe country of origin status once it violates its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights during a state of emergency. Moldova, for instance, declared a state of emergency in 2022 due to the energy crisis, and then again due to the Ukraine conflict, restricting the freedom of assembly temporarily.
The ECJ clarified that while the Convention permits such situations, it does not immediately mean that the country is not considered a safe country of origin. Instead, it is the responsibility of the EU member states' authorities to assess the situation and make an informed decision. The Czech court must take into account Moldova's actions and the partial classification of the country as a safe country of origin in its final decision.
The EU member states should consider Moldova's Country of Origin as a whole when labeling it as secure, despite its temporary restrictions during states of emergency. The Czech court needs to evaluate Moldova's specific actions and consider the partial classification of Moldova as a safe Country of Origin in its final asylum case decision.
