EU to refuse military-age Ukrainian men refugee protection
The EU on June 25 proposed stopping granting Ukrainian men of fighting age refugee protection to settle in the bloc, while extending the right beyond 2027 for others from the country.
Brussels said the change follows a request from Kiev, whose army has struggled with manpower shortages as Russia’s war of invasion grinds into a fifth year.
“Our proposal provides that temporary protection should not be granted to newly arriving persons who are not allowed to leave Ukraine because of their military obligations,” Magnus Brunner, the European Union’s internal affairs chief told journalists.
The 27-nation EU granted Ukrainians temporary protection after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, a measure rolled over several times and currently set to expire next March.
