Turkish citizens seeking asylum in Europe almost triple in 2022

Asylum applications filed by Turkish citizens in Europe increased in 2022 by 150% compared to the previous year, making Turkey the third country globally, Euronews reported, citing recently released Eurostat data.

Some 58,000 Turkish citizens sought asylum in European countries last year, up from 20,000 in 2021. Turkey was ranked the third country in such applications, following Syria and Afghanistan and ahead of Venezuela, Colombia, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Syrians led in 2022 with 138,000 applications, Afghans following with 132,000.

Turkey was ranked the fifth country of origin a year earlier in terms of asylum seekers, with 20,315 applications filed. Syrians had led with 98,900, followed by Afghans with 84,555, Iraqis with 26,020, Pakistanis with 21,040.

One in every four asylum applications, or some 244,000, was filed in Germany last year. France was ranked the second with 156,000 applications, Spain third with 118,000.