Number of Ukrainian war refugees arriving in Germany declines

The number of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine and arriving in Germany has dropped off since the beginning of the year.

The German government said around 19,300 arrivals were recorded in April, in response to a lawmaker's question. Meanwhile around 15,600 people came to Germany in May, fleeing Russia's invasion.

Overall, since the start of the year, around 81,600 Ukrainians arrived, What the numbers do not show as clearly is how many people from Ukraine have left Germany since the beginning of the year to travel to another EU country, or back to their home country despite the ongoing war.

While the number of war refugees arriving from Ukraine is steadily declining, the proportion of asylum seekers from other countries among those seeking protection is increasing, said Germa lawmaker Mathias Middelberg. As deputy chairman of the opposition Christian Democrats parliamentary group for budget and finance, he is also responsible for municipal affairs.

He said that municipalities were growing increasingly concerned about their capacity to handle the number of people. He added that it is now even more important "that the federal government does not further soften the asylum compromise now formulated among the EU states."

Germany's Interior Minister Nancy Faeser should ensure that the compromise is implemented quickly "so that the number of asylum arrivals in Germany finally falls," said Middelberg.

He was referring to a planned EU asylum reform to tighten rules in the face of rising migration figures.

War refugees from Ukraine are accepted in EU countries without having to apply for asylum.

According to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, 125,556 people applied for asylum in Germany for the first time in the first five months of this year. That was almost 77% more than in the same period last year. Most of the people seeking protection came from Syria, Afghanistan and Turkey.