"We know who lives here": talk begins in Germany about the return of Ukrainian men

The CDU foreign minister Johann Wadephul also agreed with the demand of the CSU leader Markus Söder that Ukrainian men of conscription age who are currently in Germany should return to Ukraine. Germany can help Ukraine identify conscription-age men on its territory using registration data, residence status and receipt of social benefits. This was said by Germany’s foreign minister Johann Wadephul in an interview with Bild on 8 September 2026.

The German government, he said, could help Kyiv with this issue:

“We know who lives here. For example, who receives social benefits, who is registered here, who has residence status,” – Wadephul said.

According to him, using this data the Ukrainian government could contact such men with a notice that they must be called up for service:

“I believe this question can be raised and it needs to be raised,” – the minister said.

At the same time he stressed that return to Ukraine must take place “without coercion”. Wadephul also sharply rejected an initiative on Ukraine put forward by the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg.

The head of the SPD’s state branch Isabel Cademartori, after the state parliament elections in Saxony-Anhalt, called for a change of course: Germany, in her view, should work more on a “solution for peace” and review the amounts spent on armaments. Commenting on this demand, which had previously been mainly put forward by “Alternative for Germany”, Wadephul advised the SPD representative to “talk to the SPD defense minister Pistorius”.

“The vast majority of Germany’s population supports our policy toward Ukraine,”  – the minister said.

Earlier we wrote:

• Germany is discussing mechanisms for returning Ukrainians of mobilization age – Ambassador Makeev
• “Reserve+” will now be needed not only in Ukraine: the EU changed the rules of temporary protection for men
• The EU may limit temporary protection for Ukrainian men of conscription age
• Around one million conscription-age men from Ukraine are in the EU
• 5.6 million Ukrainians are abroad, less than half want to return