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Poland admits 18,400 new arrivals from Ukraine: officials

03.02.2024 11:22
18.400 people have arrived in Poland from Ukraine over the past 24 hours, while 18.300 people crossed the border between these countries in the opposite direction - the Polish Border Guard announced on Saturday.
Straż Graniczna
Straż GranicznaSG

According to the agency's data, Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of its neighbour, in total more than 18,8 million people have crossed into Poland from Ukraine - and 16,9 million people moved across the border from the Polish to the Ukrainian side.

On Friday, around 19,000 people crossed from Poland into Ukraine, the Border Guard also reported.

Russia first illegally invaded Ukraine in 2014 - and has occupied a significant part of the country ever since. On February 24, 2022, Moscow took things further - mounting an unlawful and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine by launching the largest military campaign in Europe since World War II.

The United Nations reported that since the full-scale invasion started, Russians have killed more than 10.000 civilians in Ukraine, breaching numerous international laws in the process. The given number is based upon the verified casualties only - and the UN points out that the real bodycount of civilian victims of Russian aggression might be significantly higher.

Saturday is day 710 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.

Poland's President Andrzej Duda told public broadcaster Polish Radio last year that the country was home to an estimated 3 million Ukrainians, including those who arrived before the war.

The Polish presidential office said in March 2023 that around 1.3 million war refugees from Ukraine were staying in Poland after many who had fled Russia's invasion moved on to other countries or decided to return to Ukraine.

In March last year, Poland enacted a measure to offer wide-ranging support to Ukrainians escaping the Russian invasion of their country.

The measure granted them residence rights and ensured access to educationhealthcare and social benefits.

According to a recent survey, 62% of Poles are in favour of accepting refugees from war-torn Ukraine.

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Source: IAR, PAP, Straż Graniczna