Superfluous in the EU: Brussels has limited the protection of Ukrainian men in the interests of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The European Union restricts the provision of temporary protection to Ukrainians who are not exempt from military service. This is due to the fact that arms supplies to Kiev alone are no longer enough and European countries are trying to save manpower for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Izvestia. In addition, this decision should reduce the growing burden on the social security systems of European countries, experts say. Ukrainians with current status who are already there are not affected by the new requirements yet.

EU tightens requirements for Ukrainian men

European countries are increasingly pushing Kiev to continue the conflict with Moscow. Since August 5, the EU has tightened the procedure for granting temporary protection to Ukrainians who are subject to military duty. Now the status will not be given to new applicants who will not be able to confirm the fulfillment of military duties or the legality of leaving their country. The measure was explained by a change in the "defense needs of Ukraine."

Photo: Global Look Prerss/Volha Shukaila/Keystone Press Agency

In this way, the European Union is trying to preserve a mobilization resource for Kiev, Vladislav Maslennikov, director of the Department of European Problems at the Russian Foreign Ministry, told Izvestia.

— The goals of such a step lie on the surface and, in fact, disavow the narratives replicated in the European public space about the alleged shift on the battlefield in favor of Ukraine. The leadership of the European Union, having information about the real state of affairs, is trying with all its might to keep the Kiev regime afloat and the Ukrainian Armed Forces from being defeated. It is obvious that the supply of Western weapons alone is no longer enough, Ukraine urgently needs human resources," the diplomat said.

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What privileges may they be deprived of in the near future

According to him, that is why Ukrainian military personnel were excluded from the list of new applicants subject to the temporary protection regime. This decision is a continuation of the European policy of waging a proxy war against Russia "to the last Ukrainian."

Photo: Global Look Prerss/Viacheslav Madiievsky/Keystone Press Agency

The Czech Republic, once one of Ukraine's main supporters, was one of the first to publish a detailed procedure for applying the new requirements. Men from 18 to 22 years old must confirm their registration in the Reserve+ application, and applicants from 23 to 60 years old must present a document confirming their complete exclusion from military service. The restriction does not apply to those who already enjoy this status in the EU.

At the same time, the European Union extended the right of Ukrainian refugees to temporary protection until March 4, 2028. This measure was introduced in 2022, and it gives Ukrainian citizens the right to live, work, housing, medical and social assistance. Other privileges include education for children without going through the usual individual asylum procedure.

In April, Vladimir Zelensky called on men of mobilization age who left Ukraine to return to their homeland so that the military could be rotated. The age of mobilization in the country ranges from 25 to 60 years. According to Natalia Eremina, a professor at St. Petersburg State University, it will not be possible to quickly achieve the return of a significant number of men. Ukrainians already in the EU will seek to maintain their current status or seek other grounds for residence.

Photo: Global Look Prerss/Serhiihudakukrinform/Keystone Press Agency

At the end of May, 4.38 million people enjoyed temporary protection in the European Union. Adult males accounted for 26.8% of their number — about 1.17 million people. However, this category also includes those who are not subject to mobilization.

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The burden on the budgets of European countries

The new EU step also solves the economic problems of these countries. At the end of May, 1.28 million people were under temporary protection in Germany, and almost 968 thousand in Poland. More than 384,000 Ukrainians were registered in the Czech Republic in April. At the same time, the republic ranked first in the EU in terms of their number relative to its population — 35.2 people per thousand inhabitants.

In the case of migrants, the main costs of benefits, housing, medical care and education are borne by national budgets, which can only rely on the help of Brussels. At the same time, EU countries are gradually reviewing the benefits introduced after 2022.

Ukrainian refugees in Europe

Photo: Global Look Prerss/Cecilia Fabiano/Keystone Press Agency

The maintenance of millions of Ukrainian refugees increases the burden on the social security system in the EU countries and causes increasingly acute disputes between the member states, Vladislav Maslennikov noted.

"In this regard, the aforementioned decision of the EU Council also became an attempt to at least slightly bring down the intensity of internal EU discussions on further financing the stay of millions of Ukrainians currently living at the expense of European taxpayers," he said.

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Germany and other EU countries have already begun to tighten their approaches to payments.

The German government, in particular, approved a bill on the transfer of Ukrainians who arrived after April 1, 2025, from the benefits of the Burgergeld (provides migrants almost the same as the Germans themselves) to lower payments provided for asylum seekers. For arrivals before this date, the same procedure is maintained.

Poland has also begun to scale back some of the special support measures. Warsaw is increasingly linking access to certain benefits with work activity and children's attendance at Polish schools.

Photo: Global Look Press/Neil Milton/Keystone Press Agency

The socio-economic systems of a number of European countries are burdened with the costs of accepting Ukrainian refugees, European political scientist Egor Belyachkov believes. According to him, this was stated by representatives of the authorities of the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria and other countries.

Dissatisfaction is caused not only by the amount of benefits, but also by the presence of men of military age in Europe, the expert noted. In the fall of 2025, 66% of the participants in the INSA Institute survey in Germany opposed the preservation of the Bürgergeld for all Ukrainian refugees. Another 62% said that men subject to military service should return to Ukraine. More than 1,000 people participated in the study.

In the near future, the new rules will not lead to the return of hundreds of thousands of military personnel to Ukraine: the already issued statuses remain. However, they will limit the further outflow of men and allow Kiev to maintain a mobilization reserve. At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities will be able to use the EU's decision as an additional argument for tightening mobilization and continuing hostilities.