Poland has become the main recipient of Ukrainian refugees since the Russian invasion began, receiving 1,783,000 people as of March 14. In an interview with El Economista, the Polish ambassador to Mexico, Maciej Ziętara, stressed that humanitarian support to Ukraine in all senses is very important and recalled that his country could accommodate up to four million Ukrainians if necessary.
─ Is there a security risk in Poland?
The invasion of Russia also puts Poland at an existential risk, as President Volodomír Zelensky said, to be or not to be as a country, and we, having a border with Russia, may at some point be the object of not very friendly actions by Russia. .
This risk exists and in fact the speech that President Putin gave when the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk were recognized alluded to this yearning to rebuild the Russian empire at the beginning of the 20th century, which seems to me to be a total delusion, since it has nothing to do with the world of the 21st century, and in its various interventions in one way or another it threatened not only Poland but all NATO countries that help Ukraine with weapons.
─ What scenarios do you see in Ukraine?
Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia are ongoing and obviously all the hope in the world is that an agreement is reached, but above all that Russia ends the invasion and withdraws its troops. Russia is setting conditions that were previously unacceptable to Ukraine, which could make it difficult to reach an agreement, but we must trust that these negotiations will sooner or later produce a favorable result.
─ Is Poland opening its doors to Ukrainians or is it a state policy?
Both, that is, both the Polish authorities, the central government and local governments, as well as civil society open the doors to the Ukrainians and to all the refugees who come from this country. And, of course, it is a state policy because Ukraine is our neighbor, it is a brother nation and we cannot leave them in such a tragic situation in the face of an unprecedented invasion.
Ukraine must receive all kinds of humanitarian support, weapons and financial facilities from all over the world.
─ What is Poland’s capacity to receive refugees and under what conditions?
Our government can receive from one million to four million people. There is no time limit, but if we are talking about the time that the government provides, all citizens who enter Poland can stay legally for 18 months and before the end of this period they can apply for a three-year temporary residence. Counting this entire period, we are talking about 4 and a half years, which could last the stay, according to the current law.
In terms of our capacity, various ways of working come together, such as having refuge centers on the border, converting business spaces into large centers for refugees, and on the other hand, there is all the activity of civil society, companies and NGOs that consists in accommodating refugees in their homes and providing them with accommodation free of charge.
─ Could the Ukrainian exodus complicate the European migration system?
Many Ukrainians who come to Poland surely they hope to be able to return to their homes, their stay could only be temporary. And, on the other hand, Poland has the capacity to absorb hundreds of thousands of workers from Ukraine or elsewhere who could get permanent residence later. In addition, the European Union has already offered a fund of 500 million euros for Ukrainians who are still in their country and for those who are abroad.
About half of the Ukrainian refugees are children and adolescents who can enter free public education in Poland. Ukrainian citizens have the right to work without obtaining permits and can access the health system free of charge and immediately.
The exodus of Ukrainian refugees is different from other recent waves of refugees, such as those from middle East, because many of them can easily enter the labor market of Central European countries, in short, they do not have to stay in refugee centers for months or years. The proximity of the language is another advantage.
Currently, there are more than 6,000 Ukrainian companies in Polandthat’s a good tool to help refugees.
─ Will the imposition of economic sanctions change the plans of the Russian president? Are there other avenues of response?
We believe that the sanctions regime imposed on Russia by various countries is a necessary instrument to force the aggressor to give in. We do not believe that these are exaggerated or unfair measures, quite the contrary.
There are three ways to support Ukraine in this conflict: one is diplomatically, that is, supporting the negotiations, which is done by some countries that are not at the center of the measures taken by the NATOlike Israel. Another is the regime of sanctions, especially financial ones, such as excluding Russia from the SWIFT system or freezing its assets. The third measure is to deny the misinformation spread by various agencies and social networks.
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