Emmanuel Macron lashes out at Boris Johnson over treatment of Ukrainian refugees

• War in Ukraine Johnson's "lack of humanity" with Ukrainian refugees

• Direct War in Ukraine

Emmanuel Macron has lashed out at Boris Johnson over his treatment of Ukraine war refugees trying to reach the UK.

"I hoped that the Ukrainians who have lived through this horror and who have crossed Europe to reunite with their families on British soil would be better treated," declared the French president, a week after his Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin lamented

demonstrated by London in the face of the conflict.

The United Kingdom has so far issued only 967 visas to Ukrainian citizens, compared to 7,500 received by France and 1.2 million by Poland.

Home Secretary Priti Patel has been heavily criticized this week for justifying bureaucratic hurdles for refugees to prevent the infiltration of Russian agents or terrorists across the English Channel.

Unlike the EU, where Ukrainian refugees can freely enter for 90 days and stay for at least a year, the British government has required a visa since the start of the conflict even if they have relatives in the UK.

Dozens of Ukrainians arrived in Calais last week and came across posters from the British government informing them that they would have to return to the consulates in Paris or Brussels to process them.

Faced with political pressure, Priti Patel announced this week the simplification of the

.

Even so, of the more than 22,000 applications processed, the British Government had only granted 5%.

in the face of the predictable avalanche of refugees from the war in Ukraine, which has already exceeded two million.

President Macron highlighted the contrast between London's actions and Boris Johnson's bombastic words over the past week.

"Despite the big pronouncements, the British government has continued to apply the rules that mean that Ukrainian refugees are not welcome on its territory and have to travel hundreds of kilometers to apply for their visas," the French president added.

Macron welcomed "the first steps" of the Johnson Government to solve the situation, but recalled that "new and effective measures" will be needed to eliminate bureaucratic barriers and allow "decent living conditions" for Ukrainian refugees.

Communities Secretary Michael Gove actually postponed the announcement of the so-called Humanitarian Sponsorship Route on Friday to allow homeless Ukrainians into the British Isles, sponsored by charities, local groups or businesses.

The program has faced resistance within the Johnson Government itself.

The

the need to control his borders and "verify who enters the country."

Johnson has also resisted the creation of a humanitarian cordon between Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

The dispute over Ukrainian refugees has reopened the migration wars between London and Paris, which were red hot in 2021 with the arrival of more than 28,000 migrants in boats in the English Channel and the death of at least 27 people during the risky journey.

The British Government even threatened to send the boats back due to the inaction of the French authorities.

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• Boris Johnson

• London

• United Kingdom

• Paris

• Ukraine

• Emmanuel Macron

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• France

• Brexit

• War Ukraine Russia

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