Good afternoon.

I am pleased that Deputy Prime Minister Chernyshov is with us today. Thank you, Oleksiy, for your commitment to supporting Ukrainians outside Ukraine, together with the EU.

It has been over three years since Russia launched its war against the Ukrainian people. At that time, we vowed to stand with them for as long as necessary.

That promise still holds. Temporary protection was part of our solidarity with Ukraine – an unprecedented measure to show solidarity with the millions uprooted by Russias illegal aggression.

The current rules on Temporary Protection are set to expire in March 2026.

In close coordination with the Member States and Ukrainian authorities, we are proposing to extend temporary protection until 4 March 2027.

This provides: legal certainty for EU Member States; reassurance to Ukrainians that they do not need to apply for asylum; and prevents overburdening national asylum systems.

We are supporting this extension with funding to the Member States hosting displaced people.

An additional €4 billion in Home Affairs funds on top of the €15 billion in Cohesion funds already unlocked for this purpose.

It is clear that the future of Ukraine depends on bringing its people back.

The situation in Ukraine remains volatile, so we need to be flexible.

If a ceasefire is agreed and maintained – something we all continue to hope for – we will need to adapt, and there is always the possibility to end temporary protection before 4 March 2027.

In all cases, we encourage Member States to start now to help people transition to a national status that better reflects their circumstances.

We also ask Member States to set up voluntary return programs for a staggered and organized return to Ukraine.

This can be over a period of a year after temporary protection ends.

Thank you. Oleksiy, the floor is yours.