In 1999, repatriation was considered the most appropriate solution to the Kosovo refugee crisis. After the conflict, an impressive number of refugees returned to Kosovo from neighbouring countries and the participation of refugees in EU governments' return schemes was without precedents. These considerations are still used to support the claim that all refugees wish to return and is used by politicians to argue in favour of their own repatriation policies. Therefore, the analysis of the complexities surrounding this specific case can be helpful when studying the role of repatriation as the best solution to refugee crisis in the European context and the impact of asylum policies on refugees' decision vis-à-vis return which are currently questioning its "voluntary" nature. In light of that, this paper analyses the case of Kosovar refugees in the UK and Italy and puts into context the relative repatriation programmes developed in both countries. The first part of the paper looks at the international community's response to the refugee crisis and deals with the specific reception policies adopted in the UK and Italy. The second part considers the repatriation programmes set up in both countries for Kosovars and explores refugees attitudes towards the schemes focusing on the reasons of those who decided to remain in the country of exile.

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United Kingdom immigration policy Serbia and Montenegro Eurasia political participation Italy Western Europe refugee government relations European Union decision making Europe repatriation Kosovo Southern Europe asylum seeker social conflict