The European Ministers of the Interior are meeting urgently, this Sunday, February 27 in Brussels, to discuss the reception of Ukrainians trying to flee the Russian offensive. There is talk of granting them possible automatic temporary protection. According to the UN, there are a total of 368,000 refugees at the moment, including 187,000 from Poland alone.
• In Medyka, refugees trickle into Poland
At the Medyka border post, in southwestern Poland, where thousands of Ukrainians are thronging, it is becoming increasingly difficult to cross to the Polish side, explains our special envoy on the spot, Nicholas Feldman.
Ukraine is only 500 meters away, but to cross this no man’s land, it sometimes takes more than a day. The images reaching us from the other side show lines of cars and buses stretching for several kilometres.
You no longer need a passport to enter Poland, only an identity card is enough. But the authorities control each vehicle, which means that these cars arrive and enter Polish territory in dribs and drabs.
A little further, families, mainly women and children, cross the border on foot, loaded with luggage, after a long journey. Anita comes from eastern Ukraine, from Berdyansk, a city on the Sea of Azov more than 1,300 kilometers away.
It took us a total of four days by train. It was very difficult ! There were tanks at our place, in Prymorsk and shelling. From Lviv, 80 kilometers from here, we were then taken by car to the border. Afterwards, we had to walk 40 minutes and we waited three hours, before being able to cross. Now we want peace, that there is no war. We want to be able to sleep peacefully
On the Polish side, the displaced can count on impressive solidarity on the side of the road: hot drinks, food, tons of clothes… But here, the Medyka border post is only a stage on the way to exile.
Some are welcomed by relatives. For the others, buses and car volunteers are there to pick them up and accompany them to a warm place, where they can recover, before continuing their journey, heading for the major Polish cities or the west of Europe.
►Read again : In Poland, volunteers rush to welcome refugees from Ukraine
• Germany and Austria make trains free for all Ukrainians
Some 368,000 refugees have fled fighting in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began on Thursday. More than half of them entered Poland, and their number keep increasing “Said the United Nations and Warsaw on Sunday.
The other border countries such as Moldova, Hungary or even Slovakia, for example, are also places of retreat. Germany is allowing all Ukrainian refugees from Poland to travel free on long-distance trains from this Sunday.
An announcement from the German public railway company: Together with Polish Railways, Deutsche Bahn is preparing to put on track (…) additional wagons and special trains “, if Ukrainian refugees, fleeing the war, arrive en masse, explained Bahn in a press release.
This Sunday also, Austria announced to do the same. Transport Minister Leonore Gewessler tweeted that she had reached an agreement with the state-owned company ÖBB so that Ukrainians fleeing their country could use the company’s trains without a ticket.
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• In Romania, solidarity is organized and fear of Russia is felt
Another neighboring country where Ukrainian refugees are flocking in large numbers, reception is being organized in Romania, thanks to government aid, but also that of citizens, reports Ana Maria Florea Harrisonjournalist at the Romanian service of RFI in Bucharest.
According to the Romanian authorities, 47,000 Ukrainians have already returned to the national territory. About 22,000 have already left, they have just passed through the country in order to reach other places, where they have family.
Apparently there would be a 24 hour wait due to the stream. But the feeling of solidarity, of empathy, is enormous. The Romanian government has announced that it will send oil, bulletproof vests, other equipment worth 3 million euros. Bucharest has also announced that hospitals in Romania will be available to treat war wounded.
The continuation of the conflict begins to worry the Romanian population. Some are afraid that the country, a member of NATO, is drawn into the conflict. People think a lot about what will happen if Ukraine does not resist: will Romania be attacked itself?
President Klaus Iohannis tried to tell the people that Romania was not going to be dragged into this war, but no one knows what Vladimir Putin’s intentions are if he succeeds in conquering Ukraine. People are scared, some have started to stock up.
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• At the border with Slovakia, the crossing is very often done on foot
Our special correspondent at Velke Slemence, Alexis Rosenzweigreports that the queues are getting longer on the Ukrainian side, but that aid is being organized on the Slovak side, with NGOs and volunteers.
The Slovak Finance Minister is already announcing up to several tens of thousands of refugees per day. As of next week, the government plans to speed up the administrative procedures to give them, as soon as they have crossed the border, residence and work permits accompanied by the right to social assistance for housing.
►Report: The long hours of waiting for refugees at the border with Slovakia
• The question of refugees at the center of discussions in the European Union
” We have to look at what status we can give to these people who are fleeing Ukrainian territory in extremely difficult conditions said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin as he arrived for the Brussels meeting with his counterparts.
It is, he says, “ first of all “to welcome them” as best as possible in Poland and neighboring countries, see how we can help them in a humanitarian way “, and then see how also, in Europe, “ we can give them this protection planned under a 2001 directive, he adds.
The French refers to a regime instituted following the conflict in the former Yugoslavia, never used. It provides for the granting of temporary protection in the event of a massive influx of displaced persons, and measures to distribute the reception effort between EU countries. ” France will put this subject on the agenda », assures Mr. Darmanin.
Belgium is in favor of it. ” We must guarantee protection at European levelreacted the Belgian Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration, Sammy Mahdi. We are at a historic moment for the European Union, a moment when we must take courageous decisions (…) I will propose to activate this directive today as soon as possible “, he said.
” This is the right time to use it “, abounds the Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, specifying that she too would make a proposal in this direction. “ It can be an option, I’m not against it commented the Swedish Minister for Integration and Migration, Anders Ygeman.
For now, Ukrainian citizens can already enter the EU without a visa for a period of three months.
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And with agencies