The European Commission announced on Tuesday that it plans to extend emergency rules to shelter people who fled the war in Ukraine until March 2026.

The bloc stands united in protecting people who fled from Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said in a statement.

The Ukrainians who fled to the EU after the full-scale invasion of Russia in 2022 were granted immediate protection.

The protection came after EU member states set up a temporary regime designed for cases of mass influxes of people.

In addition, people under temporary protection were entitled to social benefits, housing, access to education and work permits, among other things.

The proposal is designed to avoid the lengthy national asylum-seeking procedures required to process many displaced people.

Furthermore, extensions of the temporary rules are possible for up to one year.

The existing regime was set to end in March 2025.

EU justice and home affairs ministers were to examine the extension on Thursday and Friday in Brussels.

The commission reported that almost 4.2 million Ukrainians currently reside in the EU under these rules, with Germany hosting the most people at 1.2 million.

(dpa/NAN)