About 25,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Spain since Russian invasion
March 21, 2022, 4:21 pm

About 25,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Spain since Russian invasion

Spain-Barcelona/Pixabay

The Arab News reported, citing Reuters, Spanish Migration Minister Jose Luis Escriva said on Monday that about 25,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Spain since Russia launched its invasion on Feb. 24, though only 9,000 of them have registered so far with the authorities.

The United Nations refugee agency estimates nearly 3.5 million Ukrainians have now fled their country, with more than two million of them moving to neighboring Poland. Romania, Hungary and Slovakia also host large numbers of refugees.

Escriva said that in Spain, which is far from the conflict, many of the Ukrainians who have arrived are staying with relatives or friends and have not yet notified the authorities.

President Volodymyr Zelensky: Every Russian rocket that hit our state is an answer to the old question about NATO. About whether the doors of the Alliance are actually open for Ukraine. If they were open, if it was fair, then we would not have to convince the Alliance that the sky over Ukraine needs to be closed. Cover from the death carried by the Russian air force (File photo and text: President Volodymyr Zelensky Facebook page)

Escriva said in an interview with Spanish public news channel TVE: “We have expanded the granting of residence permits to include all people who lived in Ukraine at the time of the invasion, not just Ukrainians."

Escriva said he expects around 9,000 more refugees to register with Spanish authorities this week and to receive European Union temporary protection orders allowing them to immediately obtain residence and work permits in the country.

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Ukrainians can freely enter the EU without a visa but require residency permits to remain.

Source: arabnews

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.