Articles by Soner Barthoma

May 5, 2025

Why the EU’s migrant 'return hubs' are doomed to fail

Soner Barthoma

The European Commission has proposed a new system for returning third-country nationals staying illegally in the EU: sending them to designated holding areas before deportation. Zeynep Şahin Mencütek and Soner Barthoma explain why its plan will not work

Soner Barthoma

PhD Candidate, Erasmus University Rotterdam / Project Coordinator, Centre for Multidisciplinary Research on Religion and Society, Uppsala University

Soner has a background in political science, with over ten years' experience in migration and governance research.

He is currently co-leading several high-profile European and international projects, including:

Horizon Europe project, GAPs on migrant returns and return policies

ENDURE: Inequalities, Community Resilience and New Governance Modalities in a Post-Pandemic World (Transatlantic Platform, 2022–2025)

PHOENIX: Human Mobilities, Global Challenges and Resilience in an Age of Social Stress (Belmont forum, 2023–2026)

Previously, he co-coordinated the Horizon 2020 project RESPOND: Governance of Mass Migration in the EU and Beyond, and several other EU-funded projects, among them the award-winning Surayt-Aramaic Online project, which aimed to revitalise an endangered language.

Soner has edited three book volumes, and published various articles on migration and governance-related topics.

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