Over 1.4 million veterans, with disabilities and psychological needs: a key issue for Ukraine and the EU

Brussels – People with extensive military experience, who have served in multiple conflicts or in a single, long-lasting conflict: these are veterans, a group that Ukraine is beginning to take an interest in, and the European Union is also starting to consider. Because the number of veterans and their family members stands at 5–6 million, or around 15 percent of Ukraine’s 38 million inhabitants, and by the end of 2025, there were over 1.4 million registered veterans and over 143,000 people with disabilities, “a condition that was directly caused by the Russian invasion,” a working document of the European Parliament denounces. Those who are not veterans with physical injuries often find themselves in need of psychological support, for what is already a social issue that Ukraine must address. 

“Among veterans, there is a significant need for access to proper medical treatment, prosthetics,
rehabilitation, necessary medicines, and psychological support,” the European Parliament’s Research Service notes. “Taking into account the age of
veterans, there will be a need for rehabilitation services over the next 60-70 years,” it warns. This assumes the Russia-Ukraine war ends in the coming weeks, as a prolonged conflict risks increasing the need for future support.

The European Union took action on the issue, discussed in Kyiv on 31 March, following a meeting between the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, and the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Yulia Svyrydenko. Ukraine and the European Union are beginning to address the reintegration into civilian life, starting with the workplace. Kallas expressed the European Union’s commitment in this regard, assuring that the “EU is expanding support for their rehabilitation and reintegration into civilian sectors here in Ukraine, and that is, of course, applying to all veterans.”

 As evidence of this, the EU’s commitment to supporting amputees, the wounded, and former soldiers in need of psychological support will be on the agenda of next week’s Foreign Affairs Council meeting (21 April), where Ukraine and EU support for the country is the first item on the agenda. The aim is to determine how the European Union can contribute, and to this end, an adequate financial contribution must first be secured, within all the support provided so far. It will be up to Kyiv to implement the measures and policies.