EU ministers on Thursday broadly supported a proposal to limit access to temporary protection for Ukrainian men of military age, Sweden’s migration minister said.
The European Union activated the Temporary Protection Directive after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine to manage large-scale arrivals of displaced people.
The scheme, which has been extended three times and is due to expire in March 2027, grants beneficiaries residence permits, access to the labor market and social welfare.
Swedish Migration Minister Johan Forssell said his country was in favor of the proposal which was discussed at a Justice and Home Affairs meeting in Luxembourg. Any restrictions should apply only to new arrivals seeking temporary protection status, not to those already covered by the scheme, he added.
“It is essential for us to provide Ukrainians with protection, but at the same time the war needs to be fought and won. For that to happen, it is essential that more men stay in Ukraine and fight,” Forssell said ahead of the meeting.
The European Commission would need to propose any extension or modification of the scheme, which must then be approved by EU countries.
More than 4.33 million people who have fled Ukraine currently benefit from the directive, according to Eurostat data.
Germany hosts the largest share of Ukrainians under the scheme, about 29% of the EU total, followed by Poland and Czechia, Eurostat data showed.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky directly called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the Ukraine-Russia War and begin direct talks in a letter published on Thursday night.
“Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us — and you. I am proposing a meeting,” he wrote.
“You did not expect full-scale resistance from Ukraine, and you did not foresee that things would go this far. Yet here we all are — in the fifth year of this full-scale war. Do not be afraid to take the path out of this war. That is the main thing that is required of you now.”
“We must determine what kind of future awaits the generations of Ukrainians and Russians who will come after us. If you do not personally come to the conclusion that it is time to end this war, Ukraine will continue fighting for its existence. We will have those who support us,” Zelensky added.
The Kremlin stated that it had seen the letter and would review it later with Putin.
Corinne Baum contributed to this report.
