Germany can help Kyiv return Ukrainian men - Wadephul

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul supported the idea of returning to Ukraine men who could be conscripted for military service, and said Germany could help Kyiv contact them. At the same time, he stressed that return should happen without coercion.

Wadephul said this in an interview with BILD.

The German Foreign Minister supported the position of Bavarian Prime Minister and leader of the Christian Social Union Markus Söder, who earlier advocated for the return of Ukrainian men of draft age from Germany to Ukraine.

According to Wadephul, German authorities have information about Ukrainians living in the country: for instance, data on those registered at their place of residence, have appropriate residence status or receive social benefits.

The minister suggested that these possibilities could be used so that Ukrainian authorities could appeal to such men to return.

"We know who lives here. Who, for example, receives social benefits, who is registered here, who has residence status", - said Wadephul.

According to him, the Ukrainian government could appeal to these men with information about the need to be conscripted for service. Wadephul believes that such a possibility should be discussed.

At the same time, the head of the German Foreign Ministry separately stressed that this is not about forced deportation: the return of Ukrainian men to Ukraine, according to him, should happen "without coercion".

Wadephul did not announce a decision by the German government on transferring personal data to Kyiv or forced return of men. His words referred to a possible mechanism that still needs to be discussed.

Germany has already discussed changing rules for Ukrainian men

The issue of Ukrainian men staying in Germany has been discussed in the country before. In June, the German government confirmed that at the EU level there was a discussion about the possibility of not extending the future continuation of the temporary protection mechanism to newly arrived Ukrainian men aged 23 to 60.

EU has already limited temporary protection for Ukrainian men liable for military service

The issue of Ukrainian men staying in the EU has already moved beyond political discussions. On 30 July, the EU Council formally adopted a decision under which new applicants from Ukraine can receive temporary protection only if they comply with their military obligations in Ukraine. The new rule came into force on 5 August 2026.

In practice, new arrivals may be asked to confirm that they left Ukraine legally or that they do not violate military registration requirements. Such confirmation could be, for instance, a stamp of legal border crossing or a document in paper or electronic form about exemption from relevant military duties or their fulfillment.

The restriction applies only to new applicants. Ukrainians who already had temporary protection in a specific EU country before the new rules entered into force and continuously maintain this status are not subject to them. At the same time, the European Union extended the temporary protection mechanism for Ukrainians until 4 March 2028. 

Germany also applies this decision as an EU member state. Even before its adoption, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt supported restricting automatic protection for newly arrived Ukrainian men of draft age. Thus, the previous discussion in Berlin ended with a pan-European decision, binding also for Germany. 

Based on materials from: BILD, EU Council, Federal Government of Germany