EU reveals number of Ukrainian refugees in bloc — RT World News
The bloc hosted nearly 10 million people fleeing hostilities, said Commissioner Thierry Breton.
The EU’s migration crisis is a challenge that should not be tackled by a single European country or region, but by the entire bloc, as it involves millions of asylum seekers, particularly from of Ukraine, declared Thierry Breton, European Commissioner responsible for the internal market.
Speaking to Sud Radio on Monday, the official suggested that migration – which has recently increased, notably in Italy – “affects us all” including southern and eastern countries. “We welcomed… almost 10 million Ukrainian refugees” ” he said, adding that the Czech Republic stands out for the number of people it welcomes.
“Four percent of its population – 440,000 Ukrainian migrants for a population of 9 million. Can you imagine this? he said, emphasizing that Hungary and Poland also played a major role in providing shelter to Ukrainians fleeing hostilities in their home countries.
In early March 2022, shortly after the start of the conflict between Moscow and Kiev, the EU invoked for the first time in its history the Temporary Protection Directive, which can only be used in exceptional circumstances to deal with a problem. . “massive influx of refugees”.
The legislation guarantees Ukrainians access to housing, social assistance and health care and gives them the right to enter the labor market and enroll their children in educational institutions.
In absolute numbers, Russia hosts the most Ukrainian refugees (1.27 million), followed by Germany (1.09 million) and Poland (968,000), according to Statista.
Breton’s comments come as some 7,000 migrants last week invaded the small Italian island of Lampedusa, which itself has fewer than 7,000 inhabitants. Local mayor Filippo Mannino said the crisis had reached a critical point. “point of no return,” while the United Nations Refugee Agency described the situation as “critical,” adding that moving people off the island was “a top priority.”
According to official data, more than 127,000 refugees arrived in Italy in September this year, double the number recorded for the same period in 2022.
RT
