Agency Report –
Brussels – If Russian advances in Ukraine trigger a new exodus of refugees to the European Union, the EU must create a mechanism for fairly distributing the burden among member countries, Germany’s interior minister argued on Thursday.
Nancy Faeser, speaking at a gathering of EU interior ministers in Brussels, warned that further escalation in the war by Russia, combined with the possibility that US President Donald Trump could continue to pull aid from Ukraine, could result in a deterioration of conditions in the embattled country.
In the case of a new wave of Ukrainian refugees, Faeser said it would be “absolutely clear” that a “mandatory and binding distribution” of Ukrainian refugees was needed “according to a fair mechanism throughout the EU.”
The burden of hosting Ukrainian refugees has currently largely fallen on Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany, Faeser noted.
Germany alone has taken in more than 1 million Ukrainian citizens. Under a special directive, refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine do not have to apply for asylum but are automatically accepted.
Millions of Ukrainians fled from Russian troops and airstrikes after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Faeser said she does not expect such a scenario to unfold, and emphasized that she was only raising the possible scenario in Brussels.
In response to a question on the topic, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said that his country was among those that had taken in more refugees per capita than many others in recent years.
“Austria has made its contribution here,” said Karner.
Swedish Migration Minister Johan Forssell said that there would hopefully be a solution to the war in Ukraine. However, EU countries must also make preparations for this contingency.
“If such a situation arises, all member states must of course take their share of responsibility,” said Forssell.
