BRUSSELS: The European Union on Thursday extended the right of refugees from Ukraine to stay in the bloc by a year to March 2025, as Russia’s war against their country rages on.
The EU triggered its temporary protection directive days after Moscow’s February 2022 invasion to allow the millions of people fleeing Ukraine to remain.
“The EU will support the Ukrainian people for as long as it takes,” said Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska, whose country holds the EU’s rotating presidency.
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“The prolongation of the protection status offers certainty to the more than four million refugees who have found a safe haven in the EU.”
Russia’s war on its pro-Western neighbour has continued to rage with no sign of abating for 19 months, with Moscow launching strikes on civilian infrastructure across Ukraine.
The initial protection measure was set to run until March 2024.
The measure gives Ukrainians in the EU access to the job market, medical care and education.
The sudden displacement of millions of Ukrainians last year represented the fastest-growing refugee crisis faced by Europe since World War II.
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