Ukrainian refugees finding Germany, Poland, and USA less welcoming

 

Germany to end preferential treatment of Ukrainians - Bild

Berlin has reportedly agreed to begin treating new and recent arrivals on par with other refugees

FILE PHOTO. The flags of the EU, Ukraine and Germany fly in front of the Reichstag in Berlin, Germany. ©  Getty Images / PA / Bernd von Jutrczenka

The German government has agreed to terminate the preferential treatment of Ukrainians, bringing their benefits down to the level of refugees from other nations, Bild newspaper has reported.

Germany has become one of the top destinations for Ukrainians since the escalation of the conflict between Moscow and Kiev in February 2022. Currently, an estimated 1.1 million reside in the country.

Ukrainian refugees have been given preferential treatment by Berlin, but now the program is slated to end; the German government agreed on the matter on Tuesday, Bild has reported, citing senior officials.  

Under the scheme introduced in the immediate aftermath of the escalation  of the conflict in 2022, Ukrainian nationals were eligible in Germany for a €563 monthly allowance, with additional support provided for rent and other amenities. Asylum seekers from elsewhere receive only around €180 every month, along with other benefits.

READ MORE: Ukrainians lose food assistance in US

All the Ukrainians who came to Germany after April 1, 2025, will be treated as regular asylum seekers, while earlier arrivals will retain their enhanced benefits, according to Bild.

The government originally considered applying the measure retroactively to all the Ukrainian refugees in the country, but the plan has been reportedly deemed too complicated to implement.

“The bureaucratic effort would have been too great… that’s not worth it. The important thing is that we regulated this,” a senior government official told the newspaper.

The development comes shortly after another hotspot for Ukrainian migrants, Poland, tightened its rules for the refugees. In late September, it adopted new legislation cutting access to benefits for those who do not work in the country. 

Ukrainian refugees have also been cut off from food benefits in the US, with the change stemming from President Donald Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ signed in July.

The legislation reduced federal payments to individuals living in the US under temporary protected status or humanitarian parole, redefining the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and restricting it to US citizens, lawful permanent residents, and a few other groups.

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Super-Gonorrhea - "on the Cusp of Being Untreatable"

Super-gonorrhoea's spread 'causing huge concern'

By James Gallagher
Health editor, BBC News website

Gonorrhoea copyright Thinkstock

Doctors have expressed "huge concern" that super-gonorrhoea has spread widely across England and to gay men.

The new superbug prompted a national alert last year when it emerged in Leeds, as one of the main treatments had become useless against it.

Public Health England acknowledges measures to contain the outbreak have been of "limited success".

Doctors fear the sexually transmitted infection, which can cause infertility, could soon become untreatable.

Cases of super-gonorrhoea have now been detected in the West Midlands, London and southern England.

Only 34 cases have been officially confirmed in laboratory testing, but this is likely to be the tip of the iceberg of an infection that can be symptomless.


'Infections spread faster'

The outbreak started in straight couples, but is now being seen in gay men too.

"We've been worried it would spread to men who have sex with men," Peter Greenhouse, a consultant in sexual health based in Bristol, told BBC News.

"The problem is [they] tend to spread infections a lot faster simply as they change partners more quickly."

They are also more likely to have gonorrhoea in their throats. There, further resistance is more likely to develop as antibiotics get to the throat in lower doses and the area is also teeming with other bacteria that can share the resistance to drugs.

The bacterium that causes gonorrhoea is extremely adept at shrugging off our best antibiotics.

So two drugs - azithromycin and ceftriaxone - are used in combination.

But now resistance to azithromycin is spreading, doctors fear it is only a matter of time before ceftriaxone fails too.


What is gonorrhoea?


Gonorrhoea @CAVALLINI JAMES/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

The disease is caused by the bacterium called Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

The infection is spread by unprotected vaginal, oral and anal sex.


Most women and gays have no obvious symptoms

Of those infected, about one in 10 heterosexual men and more than three-quarters of women, and gay men, have no easily recognisable symptoms.

But symptoms can include a thick green or yellow discharge from sexual organs, pain when urinating and bleeding between periods.

Untreated infection can lead to infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease and can be passed on to a child during pregnancy.


Safe sex urged

England's most senior doctor has already warned gonorrhoea is on the cusp of becoming untreatable.

And Dr Gwenda Hughes, the head of the sexually transmitted infections unit at Public Health England, said: "We cannot afford to be complacent.

"If strains of gonorrhoea emerge that are resistant to both azithromycin and ceftriaxone, treatment options would be limited as there is currently no new antibiotic available to treat the infection."

She is encouraging people to practise safe sex to minimise the risk of sexually transmitted infections.


Infected partners

There is also a concerted campaign to find the sexual partners of people who have the superbug.

But a Public Health England report acknowledges this has been of "limited success" so far.

Of 50 sexual partners reported, only 22 were successfully followed up, but, worryingly, 94% of partners tested had the infection.


Image copyright Thinkstock

The British Association for Sexual Health and HIV said there needed to be a rapid response to the infection and has warned its members to be on the lookout.

Its president, Dr Elizabeth Carlin, said: "The spread of high level azithromycin-resistant gonorrhoea is a huge concern and it is essential that every effort is made to contain further spread.

"Failure to respond appropriately will jeopardise our ability to treat gonorrhoea effectively and will lead to poorer health outcomes for individuals and society as a whole."


'Perfect storm'

But Mr Greenhouse warned that sexual health services were facing their "biggest restriction ever" due to funding cuts.

The emergence of a dangerous superbug was creating a "perfect storm scenario", he said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health has announced a new tool to help GPs cut the number of antibiotics they prescribe.

It will allow practices to see how their antibiotic prescribing habits compare with other practices.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: "I want to see antibiotics being prescribed only when necessary and hope this will be a new weapon to help GPs cut the numbers of antibiotics needlessly being given out."