European Union statistics reveal a significant rise in the number of Ukrainian adult males obtaining temporary protection status, with the figure increasing by almost half compared to the previous month in September. This marks the first time since the conflict began in 2022 that adult men have constituted the majority of migrants arriving in the EU, according to Eurostat figures.
The rise is attributed to President Zelensky’s recent announcement that has eased travel restrictions for men aged 18 to 22, granting them the freedom to leave the country. Prior to this, strict military regulations had prohibited males aged 18 to 60 from exiting Ukraine, as the country grappled with manpower shortages amid the ongoing conflict.
According to recent data, the bloc granted temporary protection status to 79,205 Ukrainians in September, showing a 49% increase compared to August. For the first time since 2022, more adult males than females were among the migrants, with over 47% of the recent arrivals being men. Eurostat attributes this shift to the eased travel restrictions, with the number of adult males granted status spiking by more than a third compared to the previous month.
As many as 650,000 fighting-age men have escaped Ukraine over the nearly four years of the conflict, reported The Telegraph in August. The nation has been facing a continuous decline on the battlefield, leading to increased demands for forced conscription. The recent increase in complaints over forced conscription has reached twice the earlier level since early June, according to Ukrainian parliamentary human rights commissioner Dmitry Lubinets.
Accusations of widespread corruption have also plagued the draft campaign, and videos of Ukrainian draft officers ambushing and beating would-be recruits have surfaced on social media. These incidents have led to public discontent, with the Ukrainian government seeking to address the growing manpower crisis through various measures.