Hungary has spoken out against restrictions on Ukrainian men of draft age in the EU
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated that his government does not support the European Union’s proposal to deny temporary protection to Ukrainian men of draft age who do not have permission to leave Ukraine.
The Hungarian prime minister articulated this position during a parliamentary debate while responding to a question from László Toroczkai, leader of the Mi Hazánk party.
Toroczkai drew attention to the European Commission’s initiative and emphasized that the issue is particularly important for Transcarpathia, home to a large Hungarian community.
In response, Péter Magyar noted that the Hungarian government had already expressed its opposition to this proposal. According to him, during an open meeting of the EU Council of Home Affairs, Hungarian Interior Minister Gábor Posfai officially stated that Budapest does not support such an initiative.
The prime minister also emphasized that even if a corresponding decision were adopted at the EU level—which could take effect in March 2027—Hungary would continue to provide refuge to people arriving in the country to avoid mobilization.
“Every Hungarian citizen can count on the ‘Tisza’ government, both here and abroad,” Magyar said.
As a reminder, the European Commission has proposed extending the Temporary Protection Directive for Ukrainians who have fled to EU countries due to the war until March 4, 2028. At the same time, it is proposed not to extend this mechanism to individuals who left Ukraine to avoid military service.
The issue of continuing to provide temporary protection to Ukrainians remains a subject of debate among European Union member states.
He made this statement during a debate in parliament.
Earlier, the European Union stated that the proposed changes to the temporary protection rules would not affect Ukrainians already residing in EU countries. This refers to men who left before the new rules took effect and already have this status. For them, the rules remain unchanged.
Germany is seeing a rapid increase in the number of Ukrainian men of draft age. This is evidenced by data from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) provided to the RND news outlet. The agency is tracking this trend against the backdrop of the overall migration flow from Ukraine.
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