EU prepares for new wave of Ukrainian refugees amid Trump uncertainty, Politico reports

EU leaders are discussing how to handle a potential renewed wave of refugees from Ukraine in the face of uncertainty in U.S. policy and Russia's ongoing offensives, Politico reported on March 5.

Following a heated argument between President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Feb. 28 the White House suspended U.S. military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly failed to condemn Russia, stirring panic in Europe.

Czechia, Germany, and Poland host the most Ukrainian refugees. EU officials are now debating if there should be a more equal distribution among EU member states in the event of a new wave of refugees, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said on March 5.

"If (Russian President Vladimir) Putin escalates this war even further and the American support should disappear, and if this should lead to a larger refugee movement ... we need a binding distribution of the Ukraine refugees throughout the EU, according to a fair mechanism," Faeser said.

European officials do not necessarily expect another large influx of refugees from Ukraine. Regardless, geopolitical uncertainty has prompted dialogue among European authorities on how to respond to a potential influx, Faeser told reporters.

Germany will stand with Kyiv "(a)s long as Putin's terrible attack against Ukraine continues," she said.

Around 5.2 million Ukrainian refugees remain abroad and about 4.2 million reside in the EU. The share of Ukrainian refugees who want to return home dropped from 74% in December 2022 to 43% by the end of 2024.