Biden promised to accept refugees from Ukraine, but the US authorities have not yet developed a procedure

Earlier, US President Joe Biden announced that US will accept 100 Ukrainian refugees, but the procedural and legal details of this initiative are not yet known. And this creates problems for Ukrainians who arrived in the States with the hope of obtaining refugee status. The edition told in more detail Voice of America.

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“The United States is announcing plans to take in up to XNUMX Ukrainians and people of other nationalities fleeing Russian aggression and open up a significant number of legal options for them, including a US refugee program. In particular, we are working to expand and develop new programs specifically for Ukrainians who have relatives in the United States,” the White House website says.

But it is not yet clear how exactly XNUMX Ukrainian refugees will end up in the United States. Neither the US administration nor the immigration services have made public the procedural and legal details and requirements for obtaining refugee status by Ukrainians.

“Our first reaction is very positive,” said Oleksiy Golubov, Consul General of Ukraine in New York. “But as bureaucrats, we consuls must first of all see the documents. We need to see the laws that say how we should act, what we should do, what are the rules by which our refugees will come here.”

Europe has not faced such a humanitarian crisis since World War II. More than ten million Ukrainians have become displaced persons: 6,5 million inside the country, 4,3 million outside.

On the subject: U.S. general says war in Ukraine will drag on for years, warns of nuclear risks from China and Russia

The largest number of Ukrainian immigrants is in Poland - 2,3 million. Moreover, there are practically no refugee camps there - most Ukrainians are settled in Polish families. The White House is promising to provide $1 billion to European countries that bear the brunt to a greater extent.

“I want to remind you that the United States will not be the main country where Ukrainian refugees will go,” said Adrian Kubicki, Consul General of Poland in New York. – Logistically crossing the ocean is now impossible for most of them. We in Poland see that they prefer to stay close to the Ukrainian border. IDPs want to keep in touch with their country. They hope to return to Ukraine soon. So we don’t think that many people will go from Poland to the USA.”

Brooklyn-based immigration lawyer Natalya Knyazeva says she has a steady stream of calls.

“I have to work for 18 hours without rest, without days off, because there are a huge number of people,” says Knyazeva. - We have a very large diaspora in New York, very close-knit, and people all share contacts and call every day. Some of them have families, parents, children.”

Natalia has little to please her clients, because there is no information on the procedure for obtaining refugee status for Ukrainians in the United States yet. The US does not plan to evacuate Ukrainians from Europe and by air, as it did with some Afghan families in recent weeks with the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

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“Again, we don’t know how they will pass the interview. If they get to some third countries, then how much will these third countries allow Ukrainians to schedule these interviews at the embassy. Because without an immigrant visa, even if you have an open immigration case, you still won't get into the country. Unfortunately, war is not a basis for political asylum,” the lawyer explained.

Even the rules for obtaining “temporary protection status” (TSP), which the Biden administration previously announced, have not yet been published on official websites. This status can be granted to Ukrainians who were already in the United States as of March 1 this year. The status allows you to stay in the States for 18 months and get a work permit.

“Before this law comes into force, it must be published in the state register,” Knyazeva said. – Unfortunately, this information has not yet been published. The procedure for the implementation of this decision will also be set out there. Unfortunately, it has not yet been published. We expect this to happen soon."

Ukrainians who are already in New York State on a tourist visa can get free Medicaid health insurance, and their children can go to school for free and legally. Some Ukrainians who do not have visas arrive in the US from Mexico, crossing the border on foot or by car. One young woman, a client of Natalia Knyazeva, crossed the Mexican border and was detained by the US Border Patrol.

She said that she was kept in terrible conditions, she had to sleep on the floor, and they did not provide medical assistance. Soon the woman was released, she received a humanitarian password, since she has relatives in California.

Knyazeva says the immigration bureaucracy is moving slowly, but it does move.

As ForumDaily wrote earlier:

• On February 24, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Millions of people left their homes and went abroad. Back in early March, the United States announced that will not deport Ukrainians and give them a protected status. And at the end of March Biden announced that the country will accept 100 Ukrainian refugees. At the same time, a war in the home country is not a reason for obtaining refugee status. Therefore, the United States will have to develop a similar procedure specifically for Ukrainians.

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