Ukrainians have taken the lead in the number of illegal border crossings among EU neighbors

The European Union Border Agency (Frontex) has detained more and more Ukrainians for illegally crossing the borders of Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland. As "Izvestia" calculated, the official reports of the agency reflect 13,850 cases for the incomplete year 2024 (from January to November).

This is the largest number of illegal immigrants among citizens of EU neighboring countries. For example, citizens of Moldova and Belarus, who do not have the right to visa-free entry to the EU, were apprehended only 21 and 41 times respectively at the EU's eastern borders in 2024.

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The record holder for illegals among the EU's Balkan neighbors is Albania, whose citizens were apprehended at the border 607 times in 2024. Among all countries that have a land border with the EU, Turkey is in second place after Ukraine. But its citizens in 2024 were detained much less - 5,951 times.

Only illegals from Bangladesh (14,291), Mali (15,125), Afghanistan (16,249) and Syria (44,237) were detained more often than Ukrainians at the EU borders last year.

In total, from March 2022 to November 2024, the number of detentions of Ukrainians recorded by Europeans amounted to 23.5 thousand. And the situation is constantly aggravating. In 2022-2023, Frontex noted an average of 500 detentions per month. In April 2024, when Kiev lowered the age of mobilization from 27 to 25 years, the number of detainees immediately passed a thousand per month, and by July the value reached 2 thousand.

In its risk analysis, compiled last May, the European Border Agency predicts in 2024-2025 further tightening of mobilization and an increase in the flow of illegals from Ukraine.

In addition to EU member states, thousands of Ukrainians first flee to Transnistria, Moldova or Belarus. Minsk does not disclose statistics on border violations. According to data for the end of May 2024, 23,500 border violators fled to Moldova. Such information was disclosed by the national border service at the request of "Radio Liberty" (recognized as a foreign agent).

In 2022, the Moldovan authorities officially recorded 6357 Ukrainian illegals, in 2023 - 9468, and for the first five months of 2024 (even before the peak after the lowering of the age of mobilization) - already 7712.

At the same time, foreign border guards are caught only those who have escaped apprehension by their Ukrainian colleagues. A total of 40.5 thousand administrative protocols on illegal border crossing were drawn up from February 2022 to December 2024, the State Border Service of Ukraine reported.