Ukrainian-born Brooklyn Metropolis Councilwoman Inna Vernikov is urging President Trump to increase Non permanent Protected Standing to 100,000 Ukrainians within the US, given the ongoing brutal warfare Russia has waged in opposition to her homeland.
The present TPS designation for Ukraine is about to run out on October 19.
“The USA has stood with the Ukrainian folks all through this devastating battle. Extending TPS would proceed that dedication and make sure that Ukrainians at the moment in the USA aren’t despatched again to a rustic the place the specter of warfare stays very actual,” Vernikov, a Republican and Trump supporter, stated.
Vernikov personally met with Trump in 2022 and his son, Donald Trump Jr. recorded a robocall urging Brooklyn voters to again her first election in 2021.
“The warfare remains to be ongoing, Russia continues to assault Ukrainian cities and demanding infrastructure, and civilians stay in danger. Ukraine has not returned to regular circumstances during which it could be cheap to anticipate folks at the moment protected in the USA to return safely,” Vernikov instructed the president in a letter.
The TPS designation was final prolonged to Ukrainian nationals in January 2025 and circumstances within the warfare that first began in 2022 haven’t modified, the councilwoman stated.
“Ukrainians who’ve constructed lives in the USA have additionally grow to be productive members of our communities,” Vernikov stated.
“They’re working, paying taxes, elevating households, supporting native companies, and contributing to our economic system,” she stated.
“They shouldn’t be compelled to decide on between returning to an lively warfare zone and abruptly dropping the authorized protections that enable them to stay and work right here.”
The councilwoman referred to as Russian President Vladimir Putin a “terrorist” who “misplaced his thoughts” and who desires to “destroy democracy” simply days after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
She stated Tuesday that extending TPS doesn’t require making a “everlasting dedication” to any Ukrainian’s authorized immigration standing, calling it a “momentary, humanitarian measure that acknowledges the truth on the bottom whereas the warfare continues.”
“I subsequently respectfully request that the Division of Homeland Safety be directed to increase Ukraine’s TPS designation for a further 18 months, or for so long as the statutory circumstances for TPS proceed to be met,” Vernikov stated.
Trump lately ended TPS protections for Haitians and Syrians, actions that the US Supreme Court docket upheld.
The president and DHS will quickly decide whether or not it’ll present an extension for Ukrainians or let their TPS designation lapse.
The White Home, which is reviewing Vernikov’s letter, had no quick remark.
Vernikov fondly recalled assembly with Trump after his first time period in 2022, posting on social media an image of herself with the then-former president flashing a thumbs up.
“Grateful to have met with President Trump. He counseled me for flipping my seat from Democrat to Republican & we mentioned the necessity to deliver again our beloved NYC,” Vernikov wrote on X.
“He expressed his solidarity with the folks of Ukraine & despatched prayers and love for my constituents from Ukraine,” she stated then.
