Lower thirds:

00:02 Report by Nick Connolly

Script:

0.00 BORDER CROSSING

This border has been shut to Ukrainian men aged 18-60 since Russia invaded back in 2022.

If you want to leave you need to get a special permit and prove you’re coming back. Permits are often very difficult to obtain.

But that’s all changed for those under 23. They can now travel freely.

Women, children and pensioners still make up the majority of people crossing Ukraine’s western border with Poland at this checkpoint near Lviv.

But younger men are no rarity either.

0.20 SOT MYKOLA/22 YEARS OLD

Q: Where are you going?

A: I’m going to visit my in-laws.

Q: Where do they live?

A: In Krakow, they went to live there 4 years ago.

Q: Are you going for long?

A: A week or two, no longer.

0.30 SOT ILLYA/22 YEARS OLD

Q: Where are you headed?

A: Warsaw

Q: What are you going to do?

A: Visit the city and see my relatives.

0.45 BUS DRIVER CUTAWAYS

Ukrainian authorities say they haven’t seen the mass exodus of young men that many critics of the new rules had predicted. Queues at the border, they say, are down to the annual summer holiday season.

But transport providers say they have noticed an uptick in interest from younger men.

0.55 ROMAN/DRIVER

We’ve had a lot of calls this last week. They’re asking how it all works and booking tickets or telling us they’ll travel soon.

1.05 BORDER CUTAWAYS

There’s no limit on how many times and how long men under 23 can leave for. That is until they reach military draft age at 25. If they don’t return to Ukraine, men over 25 are obliged to register with military authorities through Ukrainian embassies abroad and face a call up to go home to fight.

Most, but not all, of the young men DW spoke to say they plan to return to Ukraine.

1.15 SOT MYKOLA/22 YEARS OLD

I’m definitely coming back to Ukraine. There’s nothing like home. I can’t see myself living abroad.

((00:29 Я буду повертатися обов’язково в Україну.

00:35 Ну, та вдома - то є вдома. Я себе не бачу за кордоном і не хочу там проживати.))

1.25 SOT ILLYA/22 YEARS OLD

I’m taking advantage of the chance to go see my relatives for a few days. But it’s no match for home. I don’t know how else to say it.

((00:27 Тільки випав момент, шанс - треба користуватися, на кілька днів побачити рідних.

00:53 Дім на те і дім. Хочеться. Не знаю, як ще сказати.))

1.35 ANDRIY CUTAWAYS

Twenty one year old Andriy tells us he has no plans to return to Ukraine for now. He’s heading to the Netherlands to find a job as a welder.

1.45 SOT ANDRIY/21 YEARS OLD

Q: Are you planning to return? Do you see yourself in Ukraine?

A: Maybe for the holidays, for New Year. But only to visit and leave again.

((01:33 Скажіть чесно, чи плануєте повертатися, чи не бачите себе в Україні?

01:37 Ну, так на Новий рік, на свята, і потім знову виїжджати.))

2.00 IVAN CUTAWAYS

For others, having the option to leave the country isn’t a question of emigrating or staying. It’s about getting back some normality.

Ivan and his mother Gloria are crossing on foot to shop at a supermarket just behind the Polish border post before heading back.

2.10 SOT IVAN/21 YEARS OLD

I’m going to help my mum with her food shopping in Poland. Everything’s cheaper there. We’ve got our bags ready. I think it’s a good step, it’s good while it lasts.

2.20 IVAN CUTAWAYS

Ivan’s mother doesn’t think the new rules will see large numbers of young men leaving forever.

2.30 SOT GLORIA/IVAN’S MOTHER

I think the people who wanted to leave permanently have already done so. Maybe they’ll be some who go and don’t come back. But people don’t change their plans that quickly. These young people have plans, they’re studying at university. Will they give all that up just to leave Ukraine?

((03:16 Тому що ті, хто, скажімо, мали бажання, вони зробили вже це ще швидше. Звичайно, можливо якась частина. Але, зрештою, за один день ніхто не міняє своє життя. У людей теж є якісь плани. Якщо так, як йому, вже 21 рік, хтось вчиться, хтось вже вступив (у вуз). Для того, щоб просто що? Виїхати за терени України? ))

2.45 BORDER CROSSING CUTAWAYS

((It’s too early to tell whether these men will end up returning to Ukraine or stay abroad, especially as their 23rd birthdays draw closer and with it the certainty that they won’t be able to leave again.))

Critics of this change in the rules say letting younger men leave freely sends the wrong message, that this war is almost over and that their country doesn’t need them in the army. All at a time when peace seems further away than ever.

Its defenders say this way at least young men anxious about military service will stay and get a Ukrainian education till they’re 22. At present, many parents pack their sons off abroad at age 17 to make sure they can leave the country.