Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The Council of Member States of the European Union adopted on Tuesday a decision to extend temporary protection until March 4, 2026 for more than 4 million Ukrainians who fled Russia's war of aggression.
A European statement issued in Brussels quoted Nicole De Maur, Belgian Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration, whose country holds the current rotating presidency of the Union, as saying: “Day after day, Russia terrorizes the Ukrainian people with a bombing war. These are not safe conditions. Those who fled Russian aggression can continue.” In relying on our solidarity.
The TPM was activated on March 4, 2022 – just a few days after Russian armed forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine – and is scheduled to last until March 4, 2025.
The extension decision adopted today does not change the March 2022 decision in terms of the categories of persons to whom temporary protection applies.
What is temporary protection?
Temporary protection provides immediate and collective protection to a large group of displaced people arriving in the EU who are not in a position to return to their country of origin.
The system reduces pressure on national asylum systems because applications do not have to be examined individually. People benefiting from temporary protection have the same rights throughout the European Union. These rights include:
residence
Access to the labor market and housing
Medical assistance
Social welfare assistance
Access to education for children
The EU Temporary Protection Act sets minimum standards of protection. The actual level of assistance can vary from one Member State to another.
The European statement also stated that, depending on their national procedures, member states may have to adopt additional implementation measures to formalize the extension.
It is noteworthy that temporary protection is an emergency mechanism of the European Union that is activated in exceptional circumstances involving the influx of large numbers of refugees. The EU Temporary Protection Directive was adopted in 2001, following large-scale displacement due to armed conflict in the Western Balkans, in particular from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo. It was activated for the first time in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.