The European Union will appoint former EC commissioner Ylva Johansson to its newly planned post of special envoy for Ukrainian nationals residing in the EU, Politico reported on Thursday.
The role will involve “enhancing coordination, representing the interests of Ukrainians and implementing practical support tools” for them across the EU, Politico reported.
There are currently millions of Ukrainian refugees living in the 27-member bloc.
While Poland and other EU countries have recently seen a rise in nationalist sentiment, with calls to curtail local aid for those refugees and blocking Ukraine from ascension to the union, the EC recently announced that it is preparing to extend Temporary Protection to those migrants until March 2027. That protection currently will expire in March 2026.
The body said it will issue further recommendations to member states on this issue, possibly including granting a new legal status to Ukrainians who are working or studying within the bloc.
The 61-year-old Swedish politician has served as a number of administrative roles, from Sweden’s Minister for Schools, its Minister for Health, and its Minister for Employment, before she was tapped as the EU’s Minister for Home Affairs in 2019.
Described as part of the left-wing of Europe’s Socialists, Johansson has a long record of protecting migrant rights and safety. She has visited Ukraine on multiple occasions, including a refugee camp on the Romanian border, and was awarded the Ukrainian Order of Merit, Second Class, in 2022.
When it comes to migrants from Russia and Belarus, on the other hand, she has voiced heavy skepticism.
Last summer, acting as the EU’s Home Affairs Commissioner, Johansson asked the Hungarian government to explain their easing in immigration restrictions that made it easier for Russians and Belarusians to enter the country to work, allowing them to stay for two years with the possibility of a three-year renewal.
The year before that, Johansson looked into the issue of potential arms smuggling from Ukraine to the European Union. It was at the top of the list of topics she discussed during a meeting with the Minister of the Interior of Ukraine, Ihor Klymenko, on May 11. She found no such evidence.
“I must say that we have not seen any industrial smuggling of firearms out of Ukraine,” Johansson said at the time.