U.S. admits 100,000 Ukrainians in 5 months
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Civilians board the evacuation train in Pokorvsk. Photo: Alex Chan Tsz Yuk/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
The United States has admitted at least 100,000 Ukrainians over the last five months, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Axios.
Why it matters: President Biden said the U.S. would provide a safe haven for Ukrainian refugees, who rapidly fled the country due to the ongoing Russian invasion.
Driving the news “President Biden committed to providing refuge to 100,000 displaced Ukrainians and others fleeing Russian aggression, and through a series of pathways, including Uniting for Ukraine, the United States has welcomed more than 100,000 Ukrainians since March," a DHS spokesperson told Axios in an email.
- "The Department will continue processing additional Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s unprovoked invasion in the weeks and months to come, consistent with the President’s commitment."
- Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a statement that DHS is "deeply proud to help provide refuge for Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s unprovoked invasion."
- "DHS will continue to welcome additional Ukrainians in the weeks and months to come, consistent with President Biden’s commitment," he said.
Details: Ukrainians who entered the United States after Russia launched an unprovoked invasion of its European neighbor came through various avenues and with different legal statuses, CBS News reports.
- Most have temporary permission to stay in the U.S.
- CBS first reported the story Friday.
By the numbers: Nearly 47,000 Ukrainians entered the United States through temporary or immigrant visas, CBS reports.
- About 30,000 came through private sponsorship and more than 22,000 arrived through the U.S.-Mexico border.
- 500 Ukrainian refugees entered through the current U.S. refugee system.
- DHS told Axios that more than 62,000 Ukrainians were authorized to book travel to the United States through President Biden's "Uniting for Ukraine" portal and more than 29,000 have arrived through that program.
The big picture: At least 7 million refugees fled Ukraine since Russia launched its unprovoked invasion, the United Nations said back in June.
- “Forced to flee extraordinary levels of violence, they have left behind their homes and often their families, leaving them shocked and traumatized," U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said in late March.
- UNICEF said two out of every three children in Ukraine had been displaced by the war, too.
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