EU countries have reportedly seen an influx of young men since Kiev relaxed travel restrictions in August
Politicians in Germany and Poland are threatening to slash benefits for Ukrainian migrants to prompt them to return home, Politico has reported.
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, millions of Ukrainians have fled to the European Union. Their primary destination, Germany, has taken in more than 1.2 million Ukrainians, followed by neighboring Poland with nearly a million, according to Eurostat data.
“We have no interest in young Ukrainian men spending their time in Germany instead of defending their country,” Politico quoted Jurgen Hardt, a senior lawmaker from German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, as saying.
The conservative MP criticized the decision by the Ukrainian government, which in late August allowed men aged between 18 to 22 to freely leave the country.
Previously, all able-bodied Ukrainian men between 18 and 60 had been barred from doing so.
The number of young Ukrainian men crossing into Germany has climbed from 19 per week in mid-August to over 1,800 per week in October, local media have reported citing Interior Ministry data. The Polish Border Guard has confirmed the influx to Politico, saying many of the new arrivals are apparently moving on to Germany.
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