European States’ Obligations to Repatriate the Children Detained in Camps in Northeast Syria at protecting children’s rights and encompassing promotion of protocols on consular protection services. 321 ii. European Union Law States’ obligation to provide consular assistance may also arise from EU law. Article 23 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (“TFEU”) provides that all EU citizens in the territory of a third country where their country of nationality is not represented are “entitled to protection by the diplomatic or consular authorities of any Member State, on the same conditions as the nationals of that State.” 322 Some argue that this article “does not simply reflect a non-discrimination clause […] but rather creates a right to consular assistance to which each EU citizen is entitled, and further provides that States must treat all EU citizens the same as their nationals.”323 Furthermore, in recent years the EU has attempted to improve standards on consular assistance and establish a common framework for consular protection within the EU, particularly for EU citizens who lack representation in the specific third country.324 Accordingly, in 2012 the EU Directive 2012/13 established rules concerning the right to information of suspects or accused persons, and provided that they must promptly be given information concerning various procedural rights, including the right to have consular authorities and one person informed about their detention. 325 In 2015, EU Directive 2015/637 expanded the right by providing consular protection to unrepresented citizens on the same conditions as would be provided to their own nationals.326 321 CMW and CommRC, “Joint General Comment No. 4 (2017) of the CMW and No. 23 (2017) of the CRC on State Obligations Regarding the Human Rights of Children in the Context of International Migration in Countries of Origin, Transit, Destination and Return”, CMW/C/GC/4-CRC/C/GC/23, 16 November 2017, para. 17(e), 19. 322 TFEU, Article 23. See EU, “Consolidated Version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union”, 2008/C 115/01, 13 December 2007. 323 See in Alessandra Spadaro, “Repatriation of Family Members of Foreign Fighters: Individual Right or State Prerogative?”, Cambridge University Press, 26 November 2020, p. 258. 324 David P. Stewart, “The Emergent Human Right to Consular Notification, Access and Assistance”, in “The Cambridge Handbook of New Human Rights: Recognition, Novelty, Rhetoric,” edited by Andreas von Arnauld, Kerstin von der Decken, and Mart Susi, Cambridge University Press, 2020, p. 448. 325 Council of the EU, “Directive 2012/29/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of October 2012 - Establishing Minimum Standards on the Rights, Support and Protection of Victims of Crime, and Replacing Council Framework Decision 2001/220/JHA,” 14 November 2012, L 315/57; see also: David P. Stewart, “The Emergent Human Right to Consular Notification, Access and Assistance”, p. 448. 326 Council of the EU, “Directive of EU 2015/637 of 20 April 2015 on the Coordination and Cooperation Measures to Facilitate Consular Protection for Unrepresented Citizens of the Union in Third Countries and Repealing”, Decision 95/553/EC, 20 April 2015. See also: David P. Stewart, “The Emergent Human Right to Consular Notification, Access and Assistance”, p. 448. 57