Zelensky: 300,000 Ukrainians neither working nor looking for work in Germany
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that at least 300,000 Ukrainians are not working in Germany and are not trying to find a job. In his opinion, when Germany's social support is terminated, they will be forced to return.
The head of the Ukrainian state said this during a conversation with the heads of territorial communities and districts of Transcarpathia, Ukrinform reports.
“Not all Ukrainians are very happy to see abroad. This is not part of the plan to return Ukrainians, but there are facts. The respective countries and their leaders want those Ukrainians who work there to stay. At the same time, they are looking for ways to force those Ukrainians who do not work to return to Ukraine. This is also a fact. For example, there are more than 1.1 million Ukrainians in Germany today, and at least 300,000 of them are not working anywhere, not even trying to find a job. There are many such people throughout Europe,” Zelensky said.
He noted that a significant part of these people will return because the social benefits and support available abroad will disappear.
“They will disappear not because of us. Countries will simply stop helping them. As soon as their societies [of these countries] support the decision not to pay Ukrainians, at that moment the countries will do everything to stop payments completely,” the President said.
He also emphasized that there is a percentage of Ukrainians who are waiting for the war to end to return.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, according to the UN, Ukraine's population has decreased by 10 million people, or about a quarter, since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion due to the outflow of refugees, falling birth rates, and war-related deaths.
Photo: OP