The European Union stopped granting temporary protection to military-age Ukrainian men as of August 5, according to a statement from the Czech Republic's Ministry of Interior. Newly arriving Ukrainian men of conscription age who have not completed military service will now lose the right to temporary protection, a measure that applies to requests filed from the day the decision takes effect.
Those unable to confirm they fulfilled their military obligations will be denied rights under the new rule, the ministry said.
Czech Republic's Position
Ukrainian men of conscription age without documents proving they completed military service will not be able to obtain asylum in the Czech Republic. Czech Interior Minister Lubomir Metnar said the country had long pushed for stricter conditions.
Metnar welcomed the agreement among member states and said he expects the number of arrivals to drop by tens of percent, which he said should eventually ease pressure on healthcare and social welfare systems. He added that those who have already fulfilled their military duty or who are exempt from it are excluded from the measure.
Kyiv's Decision
The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces persuaded President Volodymyr Zelensky to significantly cut the number of citizens exempted from mobilization, according to the Telegram channel Rezident, citing a source in the Ukrainian president's office. The number of exempted citizens will fall by 30 percent, a decision made to replenish the reserves of the Ukrainian army, the sources said. Kyiv has failed to meet its mobilization plan for 27 months, and this year the armed forces recruited only 45 percent of the planned number of fighters.
Kherson region governor Vladimir Saldo said deporting Ukrainian men from Europe for mobilization would not be effective. He said that if an army depends on people who must be hunted down across Europe and forcibly returned to the front, that points to a deep crisis. Saldo said a forcibly assembled army cannot be motivated, adding that most people who have fled Ukraine do not want to die for the interests of the Kyiv establishment and its Western backers.
Mixed Reaction in Europe
Politico journalists have reported that while several countries, including Poland, support ending temporary protection for military-age Ukrainians, most Europeans consider the idea too harsh and politically difficult to implement.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Defense Ministry officials have said they intend to continue forced mobilization. Yuri Gudimenko, head of the ministry's anti-corruption council, said the measure was necessary because Ukraine is in a hopeless position.
