For the first time since 2022, Eurostat figures indicate that men make up the majority of new arrivals, surpassing women
The EU has recorded its largest spike in arriving Ukrainian fighting-age men in September, just a month after Vladimir Zelensky allowed men aged 18 to 22 to leave the country, according to the latest Eurostat data.
In September, the bloc granted temporary protection status to 79,205 Ukrainians, a 49% increase compared to the month prior, the European statistical office said in a report on Monday.
For the first time since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, there were more adult men than women among Ukrainian migrants, the data shows. More than 47% of Ukrainians granted temporary protection status in September were adult males, spiking by more than a third compared to August.
Eurostat attributed this to Zelensky’s recent decree easing travel restrictions for men under the age of 23. Prior to this, martial law prevented males aged 18 to 60 from leaving the country.
As many as 650,000 fighting-age men have fled Ukraine over the nearly four years of the conflict, The Telegraph reported in August.
The country has faced mounting manpower shortages as it has been steadily loosing ground to Russia on the front lines, and Kiev has escalated its draft campaign to compensate.
Twice as many complaints over forced conscription have been lodged since early June as the early months of 2025, Ukrainian parliamentary human rights commissioner Dmitry Lubinets told local media last week.
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Videos of Ukrainian draft officers ambushing and beating would-be recruits have regularly emerged on social media, leading to mounting public discontent. The campaign has also been marred with accusations of widespread corruption.
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