Trump administration may refuse to extend legal status for Ukrainians — Politico
Read NV on Google
Ukrainians in the USA may face deportation risks (Photo: REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko)
The Trump administration may decline to extend legal protections for over 100,000 Ukrainians in the U.S., Politico wrote on Oct. 8.
With the Oct. 19 deadline rapidly approaching, the White House must decide whether to prolong humanitarian relief for displaced Ukrainians. While a bipartisan coalition in Congress hopes President Trump will extend the program, several lawmakers view a passive expiration without formal termination as an acceptable compromise.
Under this secondary scenario, Ukrainians would be left in indefinite legal limbo but shielded from deportation for at least an additional six months. The White House employed an identical mechanism in September during the expiration of TPS for Salvadoran nationals: the administration declined to issue a formal termination notice, automatically triggering an administrative extension. Salvadoran community advocates criticized that outcome because it left their legal eligibility to study and work in the United States unresolved, though it temporarily neutralized immediate deportation risks.
A congressional aide familiar with bipartisan discussions on Capitol Hill explained that the administration is keenly aware of the severe political backlash that forced repatriations would provoke. Leaving Ukrainian nationals in administrative limbo — mirroring the Salvadoran precedent — remains an imperfect stopgap, but one that lawmakers consider highly probable and far less disruptive than outright cancellation.
Political and Diplomatic Pressures
Midterm election calculations: The prospective policy straddles competing political pressures ahead of upcoming congressional midterm elections. While the White House faces sustained pressure from conservative bases demanding rigorous border enforcement and reduced immigrant numbers, orchestrating mass removals back to an active war zone presents profound reputational risks.
USCIS position: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) spokesperson Zach Kaelher declined to comment on pending executive policy deliberations, though he noted that the agency continues to adjudicate individual applications for re-parole and immigration relief under standard statutory procedures.
Strained bilateral ties: According to a second source interviewed by Politico, the administration's reluctance is intertwined with cooling relations between Washington and Kyiv, as Trump's national security team shifts the war in Ukraine to the periphery of its diplomatic agenda. "Right now, there are zero incentives to do anything positive for Ukraine," the source noted, indicating that asylum and humanitarian decisions remain contingent on broader geopolitical alignment.
Third-country deportation agreements: The policy review coincides with investigative reporting by The Washington Post on Sept. 22 revealing that the Trump administration approved or pledged at least $410 million in bilateral accords across 31 countries — predominantly in Africa and Latin America — to deport non-citizens to third-party states. According to the investigation, the U.S. has already transferred more than 25,000 migrants to at least 28 third nations, where deportees have reported inhumane conditions and severe mistreatment.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
