The Department of Homeland Security announced in a press release on Thursday it would designate Ukraine for "temporary protected status" (TPS), allowing Ukrainian foreign nationals to remain in the country legally for the next 18 months.
"Russia's premeditated and unprovoked attack on Ukraine has resulted in an ongoing war, senseless violence, and Ukrainians forced to seek refuge in other countries," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.
"In these extraordinary times, we will continue to offer our support and protection to Ukrainian nationals in the United States," he continued.
The decision by the Biden administration comes after Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair Bob Menendez, D-N.J., Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, led 39 senators in a letter on Monday urging the president to designate Ukraine for TPS.
"Ukraine clearly meets the standard for TPS as it is obviously too dangerous for Ukrainian nationals to return to Ukraine due to the ongoing armed conflict," the letter read.
"Only a limited number of individuals who are present in the United States will be eligible for TPS, including students, business travelers, and tourists — none of whom can currently return safely to Ukraine," they argued.
Menendez reacted positively to the decision by DHS in a statement he issued shortly after the announcement, Insider NJ reported.
"After a week of Vladimir Putin's illegal and ruthless war against the people of Ukraine, I am heartened that [the] Biden administration is heeding our calls to designate Ukraine for Temporary Protected Status," Menendez said.
"As a result of today's decision, President Biden is once again making clear the United States will not relent in its support for the people of Ukraine in this dark moment in history," he added.
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