Between February 24 and May 3, a total of 5,644,775 refugees fled Ukraine towards the EU, according to statistics just released by Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. In order to support countries in managing the high number of people fleeing the war in Ukraine, Frontex has deployed its standing corps officers to the EU-Ukraine borders.
There are currently 520 standing corps officers working along the Eastern border from Finland to Romania. This includes 362 officers working at the EU-Ukraine borders. To support Moldova which is currently facing unprecedented number of arrivals of refugees, Frontex deployed 73 officers to help Moldovan authorities following the signing of a status agreement between the European Union and the Republic of Moldova in March.
Frontex provides daily updates to Member States and EU institutions on the situation at border crossing points and monitors refugee flows to facilitate border crossings and support evacuation corridors. Polish and Romanian borders continue to observe the highest traffic.
Frontex also helps non-Ukrainian and non-EU citizens fleeing the war in Ukraine reach their home countries. Frontex can charter aircrafts or buy tickets for commercial flights to allow them to return home. As of May 4, Frontex supported the organization of 17 humanitarian return flights helping 725 non-EU citizens fleeing the war. This included 698 people on four charter flights and 27 people returned via 13 scheduled flights. Humanitarian voluntary return flights were carried out from Poland to Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in cooperation with the relevant embassies.
Since the start of the war, Frontex has been monitoring the situation at the borders 24/7, supporting EU Member States with the latest information on migration flows and the situation at borders crossing points. With the use of technology, including satellites, the agency also helped Member States understand and predict the situation on the ground. Frontex officers also distributed humanitarian aid alongside their colleagues from Member States.
