EU Commissioner plans negotiations on Ukrainians' legal status abroad

EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson is scheduled to visit Ukraine in May to discuss with Ukrainian authorities the further legal status of Ukrainians abroad, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna said in an interview with DW in Brussels on April 30.

Read also: Lithuania to consult EU on returning Ukrainian draft-age men

The current temporary protection mechanism in the EU is valid until March 2025.

Ukraine will not forcibly return men of draft age from abroad. Updating data at the enlistment offices “does not mean automatic conscription to the front line,” she said.

Read also: US pressures Kyiv to address conscription issues — NYT

“We will not impose restrictions or forcibly repatriate Ukrainian citizens of any gender or age to a country at war,” Stefanishyna said.

“However, there are no easy solutions to war issues. Let’s not forget that the war is ongoing and we must win it.”

“Ukraine’s new conscription law raises questions about frontline soldier rotation,” she said.

“It concerns conscription possibilities — registration and information.”

“This is the main goal of our solution.”

Temporary suspension of consular services for Ukrainian men

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry has instructed its diplomats abroad to suspend consular services for draft-eligible Ukrainian citizens, except for processing documents to return to Ukraine, Ukrainian newspaper ZN.UA reported on April 22.

Military-age male Ukrainian citizens abroad will no longer be able to obtain or renew passports and travel documents unless they plan to return to Ukraine, aiming to bolster potential military recruits amid Kyiv’s urgent need for manpower, confirmed Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, on April 23,.

Read also: Ukraine hasn't asked Poland for help returning draft-age men — Ambassador

Ukraine’s parliamentary National Security and Intelligence Committee announced on April 24 that it intends to summon Foreign Ministry officials to explain the legal basis for these restrictions.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine