In recent years, migration issues have gained significant importance in the regions of the Middle East, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, where historical, ethnic, and economic factors shape complex and multi-level migration processes. Türkiye and Azerbaijan, possessing shared historical and cultural ties as well as a strategic geopolitical position, demonstrate different approaches to studying and managing migration.

AZERTAC spoke with Venera Mustafaeva — a Turkologist, specialist in Turkic ethnic groups of the Middle East and the Caucasus, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Doctor of Sciences at Istanbul University, lecturer at Topkapi University, head of the Center for Migration Policy Research and Practice, and member of the Balkan Historical Association (Romania).

– What structural differences exist between academic approaches to studying migration in Türkiye and Azerbaijan?

- There are pronounced and systematic structural differences between the academic approaches in Türkiye and Azerbaijan. In Türkiye, migration studies are shaped by the fact that the country has long had a multi-level and multidimensional migration regime. For this reason, migration research in Türkiye mainly focuses on issues of forced migration, the provision of asylum, integration processes, social adaptation, and security concerns.

Especially after 2011, following the experience of receiving Syrian refugees, the academic literature in Türkiye acquired a distinctly normative and state policy-oriented character, which influenced both research priorities and methodological approaches.

In Azerbaijan, in contrast, migration studies are largely developed within the framework of labor migration, circulation of human capital and "brain drain/return," return migration, and policies regarding the diaspora. The limited experience of mass irregular migration has led to migration in the Azerbaijani academic discourse being conceptualized primarily as a technical sphere of state policy with a clearly state-centered approach.

As a result, in Türkiye, migration is most often perceived as a problem of management and crisis response, whereas in Azerbaijan it is considered primarily as a tool for socio-economic development and demographic management.

– In this context, how are migration flows between Azerbaijan and Türkiye described over the past 10–15 years?

- In the context of analyzing migration processes over the past 10–15 years, migration mobility between Azerbaijan and Türkiye is characterized by a quantitatively limited, yet simultaneously stable, steady, and selective nature. This mobility is not massive or spontaneous but occurs within clearly defined and relatively stable channels of movement. To a significant extent, migration between the two countries takes place through educational migration, employment in the service and trade sectors, participation in energy and infrastructure projects, as well as through family reunification mechanisms.

Given these characteristics, it is more accurate to describe these migration processes not as large-scale labor migration, but as the existence of a “special migration corridor” formed between Azerbaijan and Türkiye. The formation of this corridor was made possible due to a combination of institutional, cultural, and legal simplifications and privileges existing between the two states. Key distinguishing features of this migration corridor include a low level of irregular migration, a high ability of migrants to culturally adapt to the host society, and the predominance of temporary and medium-term forms of mobility over long-term and permanent resettlement.

– What conclusions and lessons can Azerbaijan draw from Türkiye’s migration policy, and how does mutual learning manifest?

- Türkiye’s experience can be particularly instructive for Azerbaijan in several specific areas. These include, first and foremost, issues of migration management and institutionalization, including the presence of a centralized administrative structure and specialized state institutions with clearly defined powers. In addition, Türkiye’s potential in responding to large-scale migration crises, developed mechanisms for managing migration data and digital systems, as well as experience in multi-level cooperation with international organizations, is significant.

At the same time, the Azerbaijani approach is of interest to Türkiye in several areas. Among them are the preventive and planned understanding of migration within state policy, the integration of diaspora policy, return migration, and national identity policy, as well as the alignment of migration management with national security priorities and economic planning.

Thus, there is an asymmetrical but mutually complementary potential for learning and exchange of experience in the field of migration policy between Türkiye and Azerbaijan.

– How is institutional cooperation between Baku and Ankara in the migration sphere assessed, and what place does Azerbaijan occupy in the Turkic world?

- Indeed, there is institutional cooperation between Türkiye and Azerbaijan in the field of migration; however, this interaction is mainly limited to bilateral mechanisms and instruments, predominantly oriented toward security issues. Joint strategic documents, comprehensive integration policies, or coordinated frameworks for labor mobility between the two countries remain underdeveloped at present.

From a geopolitical perspective, Azerbaijan possesses significant potential as a transit and connecting state along the Caucasus — Central Asia — Anatolia axis. In this context, Azerbaijan can be considered a potential center of migration and mobility in the Turkic world. However, to institutionalize this potential, strengthening and developing multilateral cooperation mechanisms is required.

– What potential role could the Organization of Turkic States play in the field of migration policy?

- Although the Organization of Turkic States is still at an early stage of institutional development in the field of migration policy, it provides an important platform for forming regional migration governance. In particular, the Organization of Turkic States can be functional in areas such as developing frameworks for legal and controlled labor mobility, mutual recognition of professional qualifications and diplomas, creating a common migration information and analytical infrastructure, coordinated combat against irregular migration and human trafficking, as well as institutionalizing academic and expert networks that bring together researchers and policymakers.

– How should Türkiye’s new legislative initiatives regarding foreign citizens of Turkic origin be interpreted?

- This approach represents a legal reflection of a selective understanding of migration based on the principle of ethnocultural closeness in Türkiye’s migration policy. It indicates that, within its labor market policy, Türkiye considers foreign citizens of Turkic origin as a human resource with a high capacity for social, cultural, and institutional adaptation. In a broader context, legal norms directed at Turkic compatriots have become one of the legal instruments of Türkiye’s regional vision, focused on the Turkic world and the formation of a long-term regional mobility strategy.