Advert for Ukraine military service in exchange for EU, UK citizenship is fake, authorities say
This advert is a fake and scam and very concerning
(Reuters) - An advert calling for people from North Africa and the Middle East to fight in the war in Ukraine in exchange for faster access to EU or UK citizenship is fake, spokespeople for the European Commission and the UK Home Office told Reuters. Reuters found no evidence of the existence of such a program.
The advert posted via the job search platform Adzuna invited “citizens from the Middle East and North Africa to participate in a voluntary program to assist Ukraine” in exchange for “accelerated citizenship in the UK or EU” (here).
Examples of the advert shared online can be found (here) and (here).
The advert advised people to contact an email address (eu.citizenship.programme@gmail.com) and an individual called Sofya Romanyuk for more information. The company listed on the advert was the “EU Citizenship Program, SUH.”
“This advert is a fake and scam and very concerning, already on our radar,” a spokesperson for the UK Home Office told Reuters via email.
“This is not an EU sponsored or originated campaign and is most likely an attempt to mislead people since it is bearing hallmarks of a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting Ukraine and the European Union,” a spokesperson for the EU Commission told Reuters, adding that there is no centralized “EU Citizenship Program” as claimed in the advert.
Reuters similarly found no evidence of an “EU Citizenship Program” when searching online and via EU websites (archive.is/wip/6aeK2).
Each Member State determines the criteria necessary for acquisition and loss of nationality, subject to EU law, the spokesperson said, and EU citizenship is granted automatically to citizens of EU countries (archive.is/MAsN2).
“Third countries cannot grant EU citizenship, neither can private entities, such as companies,” the spokesperson said.
The Commission spokesperson also told Reuters that the listed email is not associated with the EU and that the EU does not use Gmail accounts.
The individual or group behind the email address claimed to be an official entity but did not provide any evidence they worked with UK or EU governments despite repeated requests. An address they provided for their supposed organization matches the location of a British-Ukrainian initiative called Support Ukraine London Hub, who have said that the advert is an attempt at impersonation (here).
A spokesperson for Adzuna told Reuters that the company is “currently investigating the authenticity of this unusual job ad, as we are not aware of a government scheme that it references being in existence and have paused applications to it and removed the client’s email address in the meantime.”
VERDICT
False. There is no evidence of such a program. Spokespeople for the EU Commission and the UK Home Office told Reuters that the advert is fake. There is also no centralized EU citizenship program, as claimed in the advert.
