Ukraine, Harald Sunde | Former defense chief: – Ukrainian men capable of fighting in Norway should be sent home

Last autumn, Nettavisen was able to report that several thousand Ukrainian men of “serviceable age” have been granted asylum in Norway.

The Directorate of Immigration (UDI) then stated that 12,549 Ukrainian men between the ages of 18 and 60 had received collective protection in Norway until 31 October 2023.

Five months later, a further 3,311 Ukrainian men of “fighting age” have been granted collective protection in Norway.

In total, there are now 15,860 Ukrainian men of “fighting age” who have received collective protection in Norway as of 31 March.

After the outbreak of war in Ukraine, a state of emergency was introduced, which prohibits Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60 from leaving the country.

However, the general prohibition has some exceptions and applies to, among others:

• Men exempted from military service due to ill health.
• Male single parents.
• Men with disabilities.
• Male companions for disabled or ill persons.
• Fathers with three or more minor children.
• Men with a permanent residence permit abroad.

– Should be sent home

Former chief of defense and general Harald Sunde believes that Ukrainian men of serviceable age have a moral duty to return to Ukraine to join the defense war against Russia.

– The Ukrainian people and nation are fighting for their freedom, independence, human dignity and the right to develop their society according to their values. These are fundamental democratic values, says Sunde to Nettavisen.

Sunde emphasizes that freedom and democracy are not free.

– I agree with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg when he says that Ukraine’s fight is our fight. When we build up in unison during Ukraine’s struggle, in my opinion it is an ethical and moral responsibility, also for the Ukrainian people to fight for their freedom, he says.

– When the nation calls for military service, the individual is faced with a dilemma. Then they should choose to fight for the collective because it is above the individual’s values. These are values ​​that are bigger than yourself, says the general.

– This is what Gunnar Sønsteby and Max Manus saw, that a free Norway was much more important than the person’s own freedom, says Sunde.

Sunde led the Total Preparedness Commission which submitted its report to the government in June last year. He is also chairman of Gunnar Sønsteby’s memorial fund.

– Do you think Ukrainian men who receive protection in Norway due to “evasion of military service” should be sent home again, Sunde?

– Yes, but the answer is not always as simple as a yes. Individual assessments must be made because there are exceptions, he says.

– There are systems that Ukraine can select according to. These are things we can work with the Ukrainian authorities on, says Sunde.

Frp: – Not acceptable

UDI has confirmed to Nettavisen that Ukrainian male asylum seekers have stated “evasion of military service” or “fear of being called up for military service” as the reason they want asylum in Norway. But UDI does not keep statistics on this.

– When I see that there are more people who state evasion of military service or fear of being called up for military service as a reason, I think it is not acceptable, says Storting representative and Frp’s immigration policy spokesperson, Erlend Wiborg, to Nettavisen.

He believes that Norway should send Ukrainian men capable of combat and duty bound back to Ukraine.

– Ukraine is in a brutal war of aggression where the country’s future is at stake. Norway and the rest of the free world support Ukraine’s defense struggle. But then we also have to expect that those who Ukraine believes should be left to protect the country, actually are, says Wiborg.

– I believe that people who have been called up for military service in Ukraine must be sent back to protect and defend their country. This is also about solidarity with all the other soldiers in Ukraine and the civilians who are suffering there, he says.

Wiborg believes that UDI must start keeping statistics on Ukrainian male asylum seekers who state “evasion of military service” or “fear of being called up for military service” as reasons for receiving protection in Norway.

Huge need for new soldiers

Tom Røseth is head teacher in intelligence at the Norwegian Defense Academy. He says that Ukraine still has a huge need for new soldiers.

– I would like to believe that there are between 200,000 and 300,000 soldiers that Zelenskyj wants to mobilize, which is a lower number than was originally proposed last year, Røseth tells Nettavisen.

– If you flee on the wrong grounds or avoid mobilisation, then that is not something that Ukraine looks at kindly. It is another disappointment among many Ukrainians. Those who have traveled out of Ukraine, and who are not exempt from military service, have been encouraged to return, he says.

– It is clear that getting them home to do their civic duty is also a goal for the Ukrainian authorities, so that there is equality for everyone, he says.

Røseth says that Ukraine currently has enough men of serviceable age in the country to cover the need for mobilization.

– I am not worried about the mobilization in that sense, but it is an advantage to have volunteers who are motivated. It is then important that intensive measures are given in this new mobilization law, but also that there is demobilization after a long period of service, he says.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a new mobilization law last week. The law obliges all Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60 to register with the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as carry registration documents at all times.

The purpose is to streamline the recruitment process and make it more transparent, Ukrainian authorities say, according to CNN.

Ukrainian men of conscription age abroad will not be able to renew their passports at Ukrainian consulates or embassies if they lack updated registration documents, writes CNN.

Stops consular assistance

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba signs https://twitter.com/DmytroKuleba/status/1782698925100589223 Tuesday morning that Ukraine is suspending consular assistance to combat-capable men abroad.

– Protection of the rights and interests of Ukrainians abroad has always been and will be a priority for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On the other hand, with today’s circumstances of full-scale Russian offensive war, our main priority is to defend our homeland from destruction, writes Kuleba on X.

– This is how it appears now: A man of fighting age travels abroad, shows his state that he does not care about its survival, and then returns to receive services from this state. That’s not how it works. Our country is at war, he writes.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov told Germany’s Die Welt in December that conscripted Ukrainian men abroad risk sanctions if they evade military service.

A few days later, the spokesperson for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, Illarion Pavliuk, pointed out that the defense minister’s statements were taken completely out of context, Euronews writes, citing Ukrainian media.

Pavliuk said Umerov spoke generally about the importance of Ukrainians abroad also joining the struggle.