MOSCOW, Dec 27: Nearly 20,000 Ukrainian men aged 18 to 22 have arrived in Germany since August, following permission from the Ukrainian government for this group to leave the country, a spokesperson for the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) said.
“In total, 19,484 Ukrainian men aged 18 to 22 have entered Germany since August,” the spokesperson said in an interview with the Bild newspaper published on Saturday.
The highest number of refugees was recorded in the first week of October, and currently fewer than 1,000 Ukrainian men of this age enter the country per week, which leaves German cities and municipalities under serious strain due to the accommodation costs, the newspaper added.
“In October, in [the federal state of] Baden-Wurttemberg, we recorded the highest monthly increase in refugees since March 2023,” regional Migration Minister Marion Gentges also told Bild, warning that this “first warning signal” leads to a new overload for the German cities.
Since 2022, more than 1.2 million Ukrainian citizens have entered Germany. The BAMF said that as of November, about 360,000 of them are employed, while as of August, 134,000 Ukrainian men aged 18 to 55 were receiving unemployment benefits.
In November, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that young Ukrainians arriving in Germany are not needed there and will instead be needed in Ukraine, including for military service.
Merz said that he had called upon Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky to take measures and provide a place of service for young Ukrainians who are coming to Germany in increasing numbers.
In late August, the Ukrainian Cabinet permitted all men aged 18 to 22 to travel abroad, prompting a mass departure of young men from the country.
Previously, men aged 18 to 60 were banned from leaving Ukraine under martial law. In Ukraine, evading military service during mobilisation is a criminal offence, punishable by up to five years in prison.
–BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI