A mix of Democrats and Republicans collectively introduced the Ukrainian Protection Act of 2022 (H.R. 6892) to the House last week, proposing to grant Ukrainians currently in the United States a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and barring their deportation during the war with Russia.
Current reports indicate that more than 1.5 million refugees from the more than 40 million person nation fled to neighboring countries in the first 10 days of its war with Russia, threatening a massive refugee and humanitarian crisis.
“We are seeing a humanitarian crisis unfold in Ukraine as Putin acts towards his delusional goal of reconstituting the USSR,” U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), one of the bill’s sponsors, said. “As we and our international partners work to stop Putin and his enablers through sanctions and by providing security assistance to President Zelensky and his government, we also need to ensure that we are providing humanitarian assistance to those stuck in Ukraine, those who have just fled to neighboring countries, and those who are here in the United States. One of the first things we need to do is assure Ukrainians here in the U.S. that we will not send innocent Ukrainians back to this war zone – which would only exacerbate conditions in Ukraine and inflict trauma on those already facing an unimaginable situation.”
Cicilline was joined in this effort by fellow U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Dr. Andy Harris (R-MD), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), and Mike Quigley (D-IL). Fitzpatrick is also co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus.
All took the time to denounce the ongoing war in Eastern Europe as one of unprovoked and unjustified brutality by Russian President Vladimir Putin. They also pointed to the significant levels of death and destruction inflicted on Ukraine in the last few weeks. Quigley called it unfathomable to deport Ukrainians into such a warzone.
“As Putin unleashes terror on innocent Ukrainian civilians, the Free World has an obligation to protect those who may yet fall under his murderous rampage,” Kaptur said. “With 30,000 Ukrainian nationals currently in the United States, we must grant them the shelter that prevents them from being forced back into the setting of war. America has long been a refuge for those whose lives are threatened by immediate danger, and we must continue serving as this shining light of liberty.”
Specifically, the bill would add Ukraine to the list of countries whose nationals are granted TPS for a period of 18 months.