Ukraine is suspending the consular services of Ukrainian men of fighting age who live abroad, says Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Photo: Johanna Geron / Pool via AP / NTB
Of NTB | 23.04.2024 12:00:57
Policy: Exceptions are granted for those seeking help to return to Ukraine, says a helpline service from the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to Reuters. The measure seems to strengthen the recruitment of soldiers for the war against Russia.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba writes on X/Twitter that he ordered the measures to restore the “fair treatment” of men of fighting age in Ukraine and abroad.
– This is how it looks now: A man of fighting age went abroad, showed the country that he does not care about its survival, and then he comes and wants favors from this country. It doesn’t work this way. Our country is at war, writes Kuleba.
He adds that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will soon clarify the procedures for how combative men can get consular assistance.
– Living abroad does not absolve a citizen of his or her duty towards the home country, writes Kuleba further.
26 months after it broke out, Ukraine is on the defensive in the war. They lack both soldiers and ammunition against a larger and more well-equipped Russian army.
The EU’s statistics agency Eurostat estimated in January that around 4.3 million Ukrainians were listed as living in EU countries, and that around 20 percent of these were adult men. This corresponds to approximately 860,000 people.