Poland's interior minister announced on Monday that the country is seeking to be excluded from the European Union's solidarity mechanism for migrant relocations. The reason given is that Poland is providing the most assistance to Ukrainians.
Speaking in Brussels ahead of a meeting of EU interior ministers, Marcin Kierwiński took aim at Poland's previous government.
“The government of our predecessors negotiated that (migration) pact,” he said, in reference to the Law and Justice (PiS) party that was ousted in elections last October. “In our opinion, in many ways, it is simply not suited to the Polish situation. It does not take into account Poland's uniqueness in terms of being a country bordering a country at war.”
Kierwiński added that if the so-called migration pact is implemented, it will be honored by Warsaw. The pact concerns EU migrant relocation plans, which could see countries having to take in quotas of asylum seekers or pay around EUR 22,000 under a 'solidarity' clause for every migrant they refuse to admit.
Kierwiński went on to say that the migration situation on Poland's border with Belarus was so exceptional that any measures regarding the migration pact should take account of it.
The minister said that in connection with the solidarity clause, Poland “will fight to be exempt from this mechanism. Poland has taken in war refugees. We are the country that helps Ukraine the most.”
“The government of our predecessors negotiated that (migration) pact,” he said, in reference to the Law and Justice (PiS) party that was ousted in elections last October. “In our opinion, in many ways, it is simply not suited to the Polish situation. It does not take into account Poland's uniqueness in terms of being a country bordering a country at war.”
Kierwiński added that if the so-called migration pact is implemented, it will be honored by Warsaw. The pact concerns EU migrant relocation plans, which could see countries having to take in quotas of asylum seekers or pay around EUR 22,000 under a 'solidarity' clause for every migrant they refuse to admit.
Kierwiński went on to say that the migration situation on Poland's border with Belarus was so exceptional that any measures regarding the migration pact should take account of it.
The minister said that in connection with the solidarity clause, Poland “will fight to be exempt from this mechanism. Poland has taken in war refugees. We are the country that helps Ukraine the most.”
Source: Reuters
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