<p>People in refuge face states with a dilemma. This dilemma consists of a wish (or obligation) to help those who need a refuge, and at the same time consider domestic issues such as financial costs and security problems. Thus, there are two perspectives which are important to consider when refugee policies are made. The aim of this paper is to see which perspective the EU had when making their migration policies. The question asked is: which perspective is behind the making of European refugee policy?</p><p>The theories realism and idealism are used to describe the conflicts in the making of European refugee policies. The method used is called qualitative text analyses in which you take out the most relevant information in the different parts of a text.</p><p>The results showed that it has been difficult for the European states to agree on a common European migration law. The agreements that have been made have made it more difficult for refugees to enter the European Union, that is, a protective politics have been made. This leads to the conclusion that EU: s refugee policies at large have been formed from a realist perspective to protect the interests of the national states.</p><p>Key words: European refugee politics, realism and idealism, Geneva Convention.</p>

People in refuge face states with a dilemma. This dilemma consists of a wish (or obligation) to help those who need a refuge, and at the same time consider domestic issues such as financial costs and security problems. Thus, there are two perspectives which are important to consider when refugee policies are made. The aim of this paper is to see which perspective the EU had when making their migration policies. The question asked is: which perspective is behind the making of European refugee policy? The theories realism and idealism are used to describe the conflicts in the making of European refugee policies. The method used is called qualitative text analyses in which you take out the most relevant information in the different parts of a text. The results showed that it has been difficult for the European states to agree on a common European migration law. The agreements that have been made have made it more difficult for refugees to enter the European Union, that is, a protective politics have been made. This leads to the conclusion that EU: s refugee policies at large have been formed from a realist perspective to protect the interests of the national states. Key words: European refugee politics, realism and idealism, Geneva Convention.