Poland prepares for possible influx of Ukrainian refugees
February 15, 2022, 8:07 am

Poland prepares for possible influx of Ukrainian refugees

Gdansk in Poland/Pixabay

The Euronews reported, citing the Associated Press, Poland's government is making preparations ahead of a possible influx of refugees from neighbouring Ukraine.

Interior minister Mariusz Kaminski said on Sunday that his country was prepared for "various scenarios" but hopes that a worst-case scenario can be averted.

Poland is the largest European Union member state to border Ukraine and has so far maintained its diplomatic missions in Kyiv.

Warsaw says its staff may be needed to facilitate a large-scale exit of Ukrainians in the event of another Russian attack.

Poland has welcomed large numbers of Ukrainian economic migrants in recent years, particularly after Russia’s incursions into Ukraine in 2014.

Deputy foreign minister Marcin Przydacz added that the EU country has now been making plans to accept refugees if it comes to that.

He told Radio Plus on Monday: “In this worst-case scenario, we are not talking about hundreds or thousands, but much larger numbers."

He added that the interior ministry has been preparing “internal scenarios, infrastructure and plans” for many weeks.

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The plans would include housing refugees in hostels, dormitories, sports facilities and other venues.

Polish officials, including town mayors, have been asked to draw up reports of what facilities they could make available.

Ukraine is also bordered by EU member states Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia, as well as a non-EU state Moldova.

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Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, has warned that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could send hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees fleeing across the border.

Slovakia's government says it is also preparing for a wave of refugees in the case of a conflict.

Slovakian defence minister Jaroslav Nad said: “According to the existing studies and analysis, I can say that even a limited Russian military attack on Ukrainian territory would mean tens of thousands of refugees crossing our border.”

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He added: “From the European continent’s perspective, the current situation is the most dangerous since World War II."

Source: euronews

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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.