President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called for developing permanent, accurate and long-lasting policies to tackle the issue of irregular migration.
Speaking at the MÜSIAD EXPO 2024 and International Business Forum in Istanbul’s TÜYAP Fair and Congress Center, Erdoğan said like any state facing the pressure of irregular migration, Türkiye will continue its fight against illegal migration flows without compromise.
“The issue of migration is one of the most sensitive topics of our time, not only for countries like ours on transit routes but for the entire world,” he added.
Türkiye has caught over 1.1 million irregular migrants within its borders since 2020, according to official figures from the Interior Ministry. The largest number of irregular migrants in the past five years were Afghan nationals, followed by Syrians, data has shown.
Figures reveal an upward trajectory in irregular arrivals in Türkiye from 2020 to 2023 before dropping significantly in 2024. Authorities caught 122,302 migrants in 2020, 162,996 in 2021, 285,027 in 2022, 254,008 in 2023 and 175,786 so far in 2024. In October alone, some 5,132 irregular migrants were caught in the country.
Türkiye has also expanded its crackdown on migrant smuggling, capturing 31,931 smugglers between 2020 and 2023. As of Oct. 10, 2024, some 9,761 smugglers have been detained nationwide.
Türkiye has been a migration destination, especially in the past decade, and currently hosts more than 4.4 million residents of foreign origin. It hosts more than 3.1 million Syrians under temporary protection, while another 228,290 people stay in the country under the status of international protection.
European countries have remained attractive to migrants from African and Asian countries in the past decade, and Türkiye is a transit route for thousands of asylum-seekers looking to cross over to Greece from its western coasts.
Some migrants make dangerous journeys over land or sea with the assistance of smugglers, who often abandon them, especially during sea journeys, after receiving thousands of dollars from each migrant.
Others are stopped by Turkish security forces before crossing the border into Europe.