on consular protection services.275 Correspondingly, host States also have obligations under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations to ensure individuals the right to communicate with, and be visited by, consular officers of their countries of nationality.276 When lack of access to consular services is a child’s primary obstacle to returning to his or her home country, the obligation to provide consular services, together with the aforementioned obligation to provide protection, strongly encourages facilitation of repatriation to the country of nationality, when it is deemed in the best interests of the child. 4.1.2 Human Rights Repatriating a Child Considerations in Preserving family unity 138. Any family separation occasioned by the repatriation of a child to his or her country of origin must comply with article 9 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child which requires the best-interests determination by a competent authority with judicial review. Given the gravity of the impact on the child of separation from his or her parents, such separation should only occur as measure of a last resort measure, and separation should not take place if less intrusive measures could protect the child. (See chapter 3 on preserving family unity.) This means that siblings should, as far as possible, be repatriated together regardless of age, and children should be repatriated with their parents, unless the parents give their free and informed consent for the separation, or 275 Joint general comment No. 4 (2017) of the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families /No. 23 (2017) of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, para. 19. 276 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (1963), art. 36. a competent authority subject to judicial review determines that it is in the best interests of the child to be separated from his or her family. States should therefore seek the free and informed consent of parents before separating children for repatriation. When possible, the consent of both parents should be sought, unless it is not in the child’s best interests to do so. When one parent is unreachable or his or her location or identity is unknown, the consent of the available parent or legal guardian is sufficient to repatriate a child. When it is not possible to obtain such consent, including when the parent is in detention, at least there should at minimum, to the extent possible, meaningful consultation with the parent concerned in a non-coercive setting. It should be noted that, when States have opted to repatriate children with their parents, the bestinterests determination for separation by a competent authority is not required. Child separated from a parent suspected of being a foreign fighter 139. When a child is separated from a suspected foreign fighter who is detained outside of his or her home country (following a best-interests determination by a competent authority subject to judicial review), the child should be repatriated when it is in his or her best interests.277 This should be done, to the extent possible, by an individual assessment of the best interests of the child if the parent consents, the child agrees and a suitable family is willing to receive the child in the country of origin. The parent concerned should be consulted and be able to give free and informed consent, unless this is not in the child’s best interests. The principle of non-refoulement must also be ensured. 277 The Bangkok Rules (2010), rule 53(2). 63.