Russia believes that any fugitive Ukrainian means one soldier fewer against it and thus helps Ukrainians to escape the war, including through Moldova and Romania. Russians help fugitives to travel to other EU countries, such as Germany, which stated that Ukrainians will be able to stay in the country even with an expired passport. For the purpose, the routes of traffickers in goods, especially cigarettes, are also used, Russia activating all its relations with organized gangs that it entrusted with the task of taking Ukrainians out of the country, Newsweek Romania reported, being quoted by IPN.
Ukraine’s decision to suspend consular services for men aged 18 to 60 is taken into account by the Polish government in the context of the extension of temporary protection for Ukrainian citizens, which is now in preparation.
Polish Minister of the Interior Marcin Kierwiński said all the decisions concerning Ukrainian citizens in Poland are included in a special law, and recently Poland extended the temporary protection for Ukrainians until June 30.
As soon as the Polish authorities declared their readiness to help Kiev with the extradition of Ukrainian citizens of military age, Lithuania showed its willingness to do the same. The Poles will send back the fugitives caught at the border, which they have not done so far.
Russian military experts do not expect the authorities of the two countries to arrange large deportations and they will rather resort to refusals to pay or revocation of work permits. At the same time, “if the border with Poland becomes inaccessible to fleeing Ukrainians, then flows will be completely redirected to Romania, Moldova and Hungary,” writes the pro-Kremlin channel Telegram/Rybar.
In February, IPN reported that since Russia started the war in Ukraine on 24 February 2022, almost 1.4 million Ukrainian citizens have entered Moldova. More than 116,000 Ukrainians are now on the territory of the country, and more than 2,000 Ukrainians became Moldovan citizens.
Data of the Ministry of the Interior’s General Inspectorate for Migration (GIM) for 2023 show an 11% increase in the number of applications for admission. These are applications for temporary or permanent residence permits, for family reunification, or repatriation.
“Two years after the start of the war in the neighboring country, the Republic of Moldova continues to offer all its support to Ukrainian citizens and other groups of migrants driven out by the military aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine”, the GIM said in a press release.
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