UK's slow response to Ukrainian refugee crisis comes under fire

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) - Britain’s slow response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis received further criticism on Wednesday as Home Office figures show only 760 visas were issued to those who would like to come to the country.

The Scottish National Party leader in the House of Commons, Ian Blackford, said nobody should support this Tory government when it comes to the refugee crisis.

Criticizing the low number of visas issued to Ukrainians who fled from their war-torn country, Blackford said Poland has taken over 1.2 million refugees, Hungary more than 190,000, and Germany over 50,000.

He said the British Home Office’s response has been one of the worst in Europe, with 760 visas issued, accusing the government of blocking refugees through the bureaucracy.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said almost 1,000 Ukrainians have received visas and he expects that the number will rise sharply, adding that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians will come to the UK.

Johnson also underlined the importance to maintain their opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He said there will be “dark days ahead, and difficult times” in Ukraine, adding that more will be done for Ukrainian people, “working with our friends and allies across the free world.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Ukrainian Ambassador to London Vadym Prystaiko told a parliamentary committee that many Ukrainians did not have biometric passports and this issue created problems for their applications for visas.

Prystaiko urged British lawmakers to vote for "some temporary releasing of us from the rules to allow people to get here.”

“I would be happy if all the barriers are dropped for some period of time when we can get maximum people, then we will deal with that and my embassy is here to help.”

The British government previously said they will allow more than 200,000 refugees from Ukraine but that they also need to control their borders.

Johnson has appointed a new minister to deal with the growing Ukrainian refugee crisis as the criticism over handling the situation has mounted for the last few days, including from his own party.

Richard Harrington has been appointed as the minister for refugees, according to a statement from Downing Street on Tuesday.

Harrington previously served as the minister for Syrian refugees and stepped down as an MP in 2019. He is expected to be made a life peer by the government.

More than 2.1 million people have now left Ukraine since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war a fortnight ago, according to UN figures.

The EU has issued a warning that the bloc may be forced to host up to 5 million people who could flee Ukraine if the war continued.