Faeser said the centers, which will be known as “unity hubs,” would help refugees wanting to return home, while also enabling those staying in Germany to integrate more effectively.
Germany’s generous refugee policies — which have provided a safe haven for 1.2 million Ukrainians — have drawn mixed reviews domestically.
Opposition leader Friedrich Merz, head of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the favorite to become chancellor after next month’s general election, previously sparked controversy by accusing Ukrainian refugees of “welfare tourism.” His comments, which implied that the refugees were exploiting Germany’s social safety net while traveling back and forth to Ukraine, provoked sharp criticism. Merz later apologized.
By late 2024 approximately 240,000 Ukrainian refugees held socially insured jobs in their adopted country, up significantly from the year before, according to data from Germany’s Federal Employment Agency. However, over 60 percent of adult refugees from Ukraine are women, many of whom face challenges balancing childcare and employment.
Chernyshov said the unity hubs would also support refugees who decided to remain in Germany by helping them with job searches and professional qualifications. “They should not be a burden on the [German] government,” he said.
While Chernyshov has applauded German efforts to welcome refugees, he actually has a strong reason to propose repatriation: Ukraine’s population decline, exacerbated by decades of emigration and now the war, is unsustainable. Kyiv estimates that 20 million to 25 million Ukrainians live abroad, compared to 32 million within the country’s borders — a sharp drop from the 52 million recorded domestically in 1991.
