Crisis in Ukraine Sweden prepares for thousands of refugees from Ukraine – Prime Minister Andersson emphasizes that other countries must take greater responsibility for refugees than Sweden

Stockholm

Swedish The Finnish Immigration Service is preparing for the arrival of thousands of refugees from Ukraine, says Swedish Radio.

The Finnish Immigration Service estimates that the likelihood of refugees arriving has increased with the development of recent days. The number of refugees is expected to increase, especially if the conflict in eastern Ukraine extends beyond the Russian-recognized People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.

“Then we may see a similar situation as in 2014-2015, when about 36,000 people came to the EU, 2,700 of whom came to Sweden,” described the head of the Finnish Immigration Service’s department. Magnus to you.

In 2014, people fled Ukraine after the Russian occupation of the Crimean peninsula.

Now Önnestig estimates that if the conflict within Ukraine’s borders escalates, Ukrainians are likely to flee the country via Poland.

According to Önnestig, Ukrainian refugees arriving in Sweden are likely to obtain a temporary residence permit. And if the conflict were confined to the territory of eastern Ukraine, many refugees would be sent back to Ukraine.

“If there is peace in western Ukraine, the likelihood of a residence permit will decrease.”

The Immigration Agency estimates that if the conflict in Ukraine escalates, the number of refugees will increase significantly. That is when the agency needs to expand.

Swedish prime minister Magdalena Andersson has emphasized that other countries must now take greater responsibility for refugees than Sweden.

“In my discussions with EU colleagues, I have made it clear that we can never be in the same situation as in 2015,” Andersson said.

In 2015, more than 1.2 million asylum seekers came to Europe. More than 160,000 asylum seekers came to Sweden. Most people came to Sweden from Syria and Afghanistan, which suffered from devastating wars. Since 2015, Sweden has tightened its asylum policy.

“Countries have a shared responsibility for asylum seekers coming to the European Union. In 2015, Sweden took on more responsibility than any other country. Now other countries have to join, ”Andersson continued.