The number of Ukrainians under temporary protection in Cyprus has risen to 25,490, according to figures published by the European Union’s statistical service Eurostat on Friday.

The figure, recorded in May, was up from 24,880 in April.

Cyprus recorded the third-highest rate of temporary protection beneficiaries relative to its population, with 25.9 beneficiaries per 1,000 inhabitants, behind Slovakia (26.8) and Poland (26.5). The EU average stood at 9.7 per 1,000 inhabitants.

Germany hosted the largest number of Ukrainians under temporary protection, with 1.28 million people, followed by Poland with 967,505.

Across the EU, 4.38 million Ukrainians were under temporary protection in May, a 0.2 per cent increase from April. Ukrainians accounted for 98.5 per cent of all temporary protection beneficiaries in the bloc.

The number of people under temporary protection increased in 22 of the 26 reporting member states, with the largest rises recorded in Italy (15.3 per cent) and Spain (0.9 per cent).

The biggest declines were registered in Bulgaria (14.8 per cent) and France (1.3 per cent).