Since 24 February, when Russia launched its large-scale invasion of Ukraine, a total of 6.03 million people have crossed the Polish-Ukrainian border into Poland, the Border Guard (SG) tweeted on Sunday morning.

According to the SG, on Saturday, Border Guard officers carried out around 24,700 border checks on people entering Poland from Ukraine, and by 7:00 a.m. on Sunday, the number of arrivals had reached around 7,200 people.

https://twitter.com/Straz_Graniczna/status/1566304732091744256?s=20&t=mGbwS_5twl1jtjGlyrGUWQ

The Border Guard also said that over 4.2 million people had left Poland for Ukraine since the outbreak of the war. Last Saturday, around 31,200 people crossed the border from Poland to Ukraine.

According to Ukrinform, there may be more than 3 million Ukrainian citizens remaining in Poland as of today. At the start of last Thursday’s academic year, around 185,000 Ukrainian children went to Polish schools.

From the beginning of the conflict, Polish officials assured that any Ukrainian seeking help or refuge in Poland will receive it. Tonnes of aid have already been provided by Poles. 

Polish politicians, who are usually so keen on clashing with each other, proceeded to a much-needed “ceasefire” in the last months and joined their forces in order to coordinate the humanitarian help most effectively at every regional level. 

It is worth reminding that the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine has been ongoing for nearly a decade, following Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its numerous military provocations in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. 

Image: Twitter (@Straz_Graniczna)

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen