180
Opinion of the Court
would create an absurd anomaly: Dangerous aliens on the high seas would be entitled to the benefits of 33.1 while those residing in the country that sought to expel them would not. It is more reasonable to assume that the coverage of 33.2 was limited to those already in the country because it was understood that 33.1 obligated the signatory state only with respect to aliens within its territory.36
Article 33.1 uses the words "expel or return ('refouler')" as an obvious parallel to the words "deport or return" in § 243(h)(1). There is no dispute that "expel" has the same meaning as "deport"; it refers to the deportation or expulsion of an alien who is already present in the host country. The dual reference identified and explained in our opinion in Leng May Ma v. Barber suggests that the term "return ('refouler')" refers to the exclusion of aliens who are merely " 'on the threshold of initial entry.' " 357 U. S., at 187 (quoting Shaughnessy v. United States ex rel. Mezei, 345 U. S. 206, 212 (1953)).
This suggestion—that "return" has a legal meaning narrower than its common meaning—is reinforced by the parenthetical reference to "refouler," a French word that is not an exact synonym for the English word "return." Indeed, neither of two respected English-French dictionaries mentions "refouler" as one of many possible French translations
36 Although the parallel provision in § 243(h)(2)(D), 8 U. S. C. § 243(h) (2)(D), that was added to the INA in 1980 does not contain the "country in which he is" language, the general understanding that it was intended to conform the statute to the Protocol leads us to give it that reading, particularly since its text is otherwise so similar to Article 33.2. It provides that § 243(h)(1) "shall not apply" to an alien if the Attorney General determines that "there are reasonable grounds for regarding the alien as a danger to the security of the United States." Thus the statutory term "security of the United States" replaces the Protocol's term "security of the country in which he is." The parallel surely implies that for statutory purposes "the United States" is "the country in which he is."
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