ICMPD Director General Michael Spindelegger met with Ukraine Vice Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, to discuss the newly established Ministry of Unity that he will lead as Minister, as well as ongoing cooperation on border management and supporting the needs for the return and reintegration of Ukrainians.
At a meeting on 30 January 2025, Mr Spindelegger and Minister Chernyshov discussed strengthening the cooperation with ICMPD, including the Ukrainian Consultation Centres (UCC) that support the Ukrainian communities in Germany, Czechia, and Poland; and the planned Unity Hubs for Ukrainians in EU Member States.
Currently, ICMPD manages the operation of UCCs in Berlin, Prague and Gdansk, and a call centre in Warsaw. These centres offer in-person, online, and phone consultations in Ukrainian on a wide range of topics, including temporary protection status, residence, and potential return home. Since May 2023, over 115,000 consultations and counselling sessions have been provided to Ukrainians at the UCCs, which are well placed to be tailored as information hubs for return and reintegration.
It will be important to continue dialogue to develop durable solutions for displaced Ukrainians while facilitating their dual-intent¹ integration or eventual return.said Mr Spindelegger at the meeting
He highlighted the importance of providing capacity-building for Ukrainian diaspora organisations, strengthening of diaspora networks across Europe, and how their potential can play a critical role in post-war recovery.
Minister Chernyshov presented the key activities of the Ministry of National Unity. Established by Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers on 24 January 2025, the new Ministry is a reorganisation of the former Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories. This is in response to the challenges of the Russian aggression, the critical demographic situation in the country; and aimed to develop policies in engaging with the displaced Ukrainians abroad.
ICMPD has a long-standing cooperation with Ukraine, including past and ongoing bilateral and multi-lateral projects funded by the EU and some of its Member States. Ukraine is also active in inter-governmental dialogues Prague Process and Budapest Process, both hosted by ICMPD as Secretariat, and institutionalised cooperation with its border management and migration authorities. ICMPD, including within the Prague Process, which provided policy papers and debates on potential future scenarios in Ukraine, has also been contributing to policy-level discussions on the future of the temporary protection for Ukrainians in EU Member States.
ICMPD’s active role in the planned Unity Hubs in the countries with the largest presence of Ukrainian citizens represents another important step in working with externally displaced Ukrainians and the Ukrainian communities beyond Europe.