Bavarian Authorities Demand Restrictions on Entry of Young Ukrainian Men to Germany

Bavarian PM Markus Söder urged the EU and Berlin to pressure Ukraine to change its exit rules. He stated that young Ukrainian men should defend their homeland instead of seeking refuge in Germany.

“The EU and Berlin must influence Ukraine to change the relaxed exit rules. It won’t help anyone if more and more young men from Ukraine come to Germany instead of defending their homeland,” stated Markus Söder, Prime Minister of the federal state of Bavaria.

When Ukraine lifted the exit ban for men aged 18 to 22, the number of asylum applications in Germany surged from approximately 100 per week to the current 1,000, writes the German tabloid Bild.

Against this backdrop, Söder has significantly intensified his calls in refugee policy, demanding a stop to aid payments for Ukrainians of draft age and a restriction on immigration.

According to representatives of the region, Germany should simultaneously maintain support for Ukraine with weapons and humanitarian aid, but expect men to also defend their country.

Furthermore, it is proposed to increase the number of rejections for asylum applications and create special centers for deportation.

The Bavarian Prime Minister’s initiative has already sparked lively discussion among European politicians. Some experts believe that restricting the freedom of movement for Ukrainians may contradict EU principles, as well as negatively affect Germany’s humanitarian image.

At the same time, supporters of the initiative emphasize the need for a balance between supporting Ukraine and controlling internal security and migration flows.