Poland is asking for funds, not relocation. A completely new mechanism is needed

At present, the European Union does not have any regulations which, in the event of a large influx of refugees, would activate their automatic distribution among EU countries, because work on such a solution has been blocked for several years, e.g. through Poland. However, now in Brussels, no mention of this matter is heard at all, and diplomats from many EU countries assure that their capitals are ready to participate in voluntary relocation. But Poland still does not ask for such a – coordinated at the EU level – division of Ukrainians who, thanks to the EU reaching for the provisions on “temporary protection”, can travel all over the EU anyway, being granted the right to a one-year stay (with access to the labor market, healthcare and education) in every EU country they go to. Therefore, a natural “relocation” is underway without top-down coordination, but Poles in the EU are seeking financial solutions tailored to the scenario that most refugees will stay in Poland.

– We do not want to create refugee camps – Polish representatives in Brussels regularly repeat, urging the European Commission to accelerate work on long-term financial support for the integration of Ukrainians. – Access of Ukrainian women to the labor market cannot be effective until there is a solution for caring for their children. And distance learning is not a suitable idea for a million children – victims of the war in Poland – argued Poles during the meetings of representatives of 27 EU countries in Brussels.

– You need to create places in nurseries, kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools – said Polish ambassador Andrzej Sadoś after another conference on Ukraine and refugees last Friday [18.3.2022].

Some officials of the European Commission argue that thanks to the already proposed changes to the regulations, Poland will soon be able to allocate up to EUR 2 billion to the needs of refugees thanks to the reprogramming of some EU funds. However, Sadoś stressed on Friday that Brussels should create a “new financial structure” in the EU budget to facilitate the spending of money – from education to housing. In Brussels, Poland uses the example of managing a special refugee fund for Turkey amounting to EUR 9 billion from 2016 to 2023, of which about six billion has already been spent.

The European Commission next Tuesday [22.03.2022] will send a delegation to Warsaw to recognize the needs both in terms of amounts and the creation of new financing paths for programs related to refugees from Ukraine in the EU budget. – So far, we have seen some communication problems. The European Commission said that Poland still has not asked for specific help. On the other hand, Poland said that the European Commission was acting too slowly. I suspect that this can be solved quickly, argues one of the EU diplomats in Brussels.

What about trucks to Russia

Poland is among the EU countries that postulate the extension of sanctions to include certain restrictions in road transport. But since there is no embargo on trade between the EU and Russia, then in the case of the ongoing movement of trucks across the Polish-Belarusian border – there was a political will to inhibit trade in such a way – there remains a long checking of consignment notes or tedious and thorough customs controls. It is forbidden to export to Russia, inter alia, luxury goods, oil refining equipment, but also euro banknotes (they can only be exported for personal use of travelers), so – as one of Brussels trade experts argues – you can look for it in trucks for a very long time.

Magdalena Adamowicz (PO) in her MEP questioning a few days ago drew the attention of the European Commission to the “urgent need” of financial and personal support for EU and national agencies responsible for the eastern border, where there is a risk of avoiding sanctions by trucks with prohibited, unchecked loads. there are also further-reaching restrictions in the field of trade at the European level, as these are competences transferred to the Union – wrote Adamowicz.

Western sanctions against Russia do not include drugs. Some pharmaceutical companies, by sticking to the supply of drugs necessary for patients, demonstrate opposition to the war by restricting the supply of other pharmaceuticals. For example, the Eli Lilly concern decided to suspend the export of funds for potency to Russia.