Norway has already excluded refugees from Lviv, Volyn, and Transcarpathian regions from automatic protection.
Polish authorities are supportive of the idea to limit access to temporary protection in the EU for Ukrainian men of draft age, Polish media report, citing diplomatic sources.
Poland supports the proposal to potentially restrict the right to temporary protection in the EU for Ukrainian men of draft age, which ministers will discuss on Thursday, June 4.
"In our opinion, there is no dispute that individuals who are already unable to legally leave Ukraine should not be able to receive temporary protection in the EU," explained a Polish diplomat.
He added that such a decision would be beneficial in terms of relations with the Ukrainian authorities, who support these restrictions as they face a serious manpower shortage on the front.
According to the diplomat, depriving this specific group of access to temporary protection does not violate ethical or humanitarian principles, as it systematically equates their rights with those of other foreigners. Furthermore, Warsaw also supports the abolition of special benefits for Ukrainian refugees in favor of standard migration rules.
At the same time, Poland finds unacceptable a version of restrictions for Ukrainians based on geographical factors. This refers to restrictions on providing protection for those individuals coming from "relatively safe" regions of Ukraine. Such a system was introduced, for example, by Norway, which excluded refugees from several Ukrainian regions, such as Lviv, Volyn, or Transcarpathia, from automatic protection.
Warsaw rejects such an option as unfair, arguing that all of Ukraine is subject to missile strikes from Russia.
It should be noted that some national governments have already begun to consider tightening the rules for Ukrainians regarding temporary protection. Denmark, in addition to restrictions for men aged 23–60, is considering suspending the provision of temporary protection on general grounds for newcomers from 14 regions that "have been less affected by military actions."
Leave a comment