WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland's president on Wednesday condemned the government’s contentious plan to suspend the right to asylum for irregular migrants, calling it a “fatal mistake.”
President Andrzej Duda, whose approval is needed for the plan to take effect, argued in parliament that it would block access to safe haven for people in Russia and neighboring Belarus who oppose their governments. Prime Minister Donald Tusk replied that it would not apply to dissidents.
Tusk's government on Tuesday adopted the five-year plan that's intended to strengthen protection of Poland’s, and the European Union’s, eastern border from pressure from thousands of unauthorized migrants from Africa and the Middle East that started in 2021. It doesn't affect people coming in from neighboring Ukraine.
The EU asserts that the migration pressure is sponsored by Minsk and Moscow as part of their hybrid war on the bloc in response to its support for Ukraine's struggle against Russian invasion.
“Poland cannot and will not be helpless in this situation,” Tusk said in parliament.
Poland’s plan aims to signal that the country is not a source of easy asylum or visas into the EU. In many cases, irregular migrants apply for asylum in Poland, but before requests are processed, they travel across the EU’s no-visa travel zone to reach Germany or other countries in Western Europe. Germany recently expanded controls on its borders to fight irregular migration.
The plan says that in the case of a "threat of destabilization of the country by migration inflow," the acceptance of asylum applications can be suspended. The general rules of granting asylum will be toughened.
A government communique posted Tuesday night says migration decisions will weigh the country of origin, reason for entry and scale of arrivals.
Human rights organizations have protested the plan, which failed to win support from four left-wing ministers in Tusk's coalition government. It still needs approval from parliament and Duda to become binding. But Duda has made it clear he will not back it.
Duda on Wednesday asserted that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko “are trying to destabilize the situation on our border, in the EU, and your response to this is to deprive people whom Putin and Lukashenko imprison and persecute of a safe haven. It must be some fatal mistake.”
Poland's plan will be discussed at the upcoming EU summit this week in Brussels.
In a letter Monday to EU leaders, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Russia and Belarus are “exercising pressure on the EU’s external border by weaponizing people, undermining the security of our union." She called for a “clear and determined European response.”
This story has been corrected to say the government decision was Tuesday, not Thursday.
Follow AP’s coverage of migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
FILE -President of Poland Andrzej Duda addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith, File)
FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk pauses as he speaks, during a news conference following his meeting with Lithuania's Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte at the government's headquarters in Vilnius, Lithuania, on March 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis, File)
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that Western partners are ramping up pressure to negotiate with Russia, hinting that such talks may not be favorable to Kyiv, as he unveiled to lawmakers the main points of his victory plan - his blueprint to pave the way for a just peace for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy told the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, that in “non-public communication with Ukraine,” partners are increasingly mentioning “negotiations” and much less frequently using the word “justice,” he said addressing lawmakers in Ukraine's Parliament.
Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is not prepared for a “frozen conflict” or any “trade-offs involving territory or sovereignty,” which garnered a long applause. The victory plan, which has been shrouded in secrecy as Zelenskyy presented it to key allies in recent weeks, including U.S. President Joe Biden, is Ukraine's way to strengthen its hand in any future negotiation scenario with Russia as circumstances on the battefield appear bleak.
The president also dialed up the stakes in Ukraine, repeating his recent claims that North Korea is now sending military personnel to help Russia’s war effort, as well as delivering ammunition, and that Iran and China are also aiding Moscow.
His plan to win his country’s fight against Russia’s invasion could bring peace next year, Zelenksyy said, but it contains a step that some crucial Western allies have so far refused to countenance: inviting Ukraine to join NATO before the war ends.
“If we start moving according to this victory plan now, it may be possible to end the war no later than next year,” Zelenskyy said.
The parliament will prioritize the bills needed to implement the plan, said Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk after Zelenskyy’s presentation. According to Stefanchuk, while the issue of NATO membership is political, it also requires the adoption of series of laws to match Ukraine to NATO standards.
The first point in Zelenskyy’s five-point plan is an invitation to join NATO. “We understand that NATO membership is a matter of the future, not the present," he clarified. Ukrainian officials reckon an invitation would alter Putin's “geopolitical calculations.”
As he delivered his speech, the mood in Ukraine was grim. Ukraine’s troops are having trouble holding back Russia’s military might, especially in the eastern Donetsk region where they are gradually being pushed back. Though Russia’s gains have been incremental, its steady forward movement is slowly adding up and Ukraine keenly feels the need for more large-scale Western help.
But there are signs that Western support may be diminished by a focus on the Middle East wars and domestic political concerns. The U.S. elections next month could bring a major shift in Ukraine’s fortunes, as Washington has been the biggest provider of military aid.
Zelenskyy said granting Ukraine an invitation would be a “testament of (allies’) determination” to support Ukraine. “An invitation is a strong decision that requires nothing but determination,” he said.
NATO’s collective security guarantee — Article 5 of its founding treaty — is the pillar on which its credibility is based. It is a political commitment by all member countries to come to the aid of any member whose sovereignty or territory might be under attack.
At their summit in Washington in July, NATO’s 32 members declared Ukraine to be on an “irreversible” path to membership. Any decision on offering to start membership talks is probably not likely before the next summit in the Netherlands in June.
Despite his attempts to win approval for the plan from Western partners, none have yet publicly voiced their support.
Lawmakers had a mixed reaction to the plan and whether it could be implemented.
“First of all, it’s not a plan. Plan means something with concrete steps. It’s kind of a wish list from Ukraine for our partners, how they can and should support us. And it doesn’t look realistic. We were waiting for some real serious conversation about the situation and the strategy, and this is not that,” said Oleksii Honcharenko, a lawmaker from an opposition party.
He added that delivering a plan purported to be about victory as Russia advances along the eastern front is “contradictory.”
“It’s realistic and rather pragmatic plan. It can be implemented if we have enough aid and support from our allies and partners,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, an MP with Zelenskyy’s party. “One of the key issues is invitation from NATO to join the Alliance. In itself it would be a huge strategic defeat for Putin.
“I also liked that president talked about those things which can be lucrative for the West, explaining why Ukraine might be of great value for Europe and the West from geopolitical and economic economic points of view,” he added. “And the question is on whose side will be these resources: on the side of the democratic states or on the side of the authoritarian regimes.”
Even as Zelenskyy was presenting his plan to Ukrainian lawmakers, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov shrugged it off as “ephemeral,” saying mockingly that “most likely, it’s the U.S. plan to fight us until the last Ukrainian, which Zelenskyy camouflaged and called a ‘peace plan.’”
Zelenskyy’s “victory plan” contains confidential sections which he didn’t mention in Parliament.
Other aspects of the plan include continued striking of targets on Russian soil, including the incursion into Russia’s Kursk border region that began in August and permission to use long-range missiles to target military infrastructure deep inside Russian territory.
Ukraine, he said, also needs more air defense systems and assistance from partners to shoot down Russian missiles. It also requested access to a broader range of intelligence from allies.
Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine is rich in natural resources, including critically important metals “worth trillions of U.S. dollars,” such as uranium, titanium, lithium, graphite and others.
Those Ukrainian assets, as well as the country’s agricultural production, are among Russia’s key targets in the war, he said, but could be shared in postwar times with partners.
Also in a postwar period, battle-hardened Ukrainian troops would be an asset for NATO efforts to keep Russia at bay.
Associated Press writer Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed.
Follow AP's coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives to speak to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to parliamentarians at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
In this photo provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Oct. 16, 2024, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy listens to the national anthem before his speech at Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
FILE - Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump meets with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Trump Tower, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
FILE - Vice President Kamala Harris meets with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Sept. 26, 2024, in the vice president's ceremonial office inside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
FILE - In this image provided by the Office of the Ukrainian Presidency, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, is watched by Rich Hansen, the commander's representative for the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant, while signing military ordnance in Scranton, Pa., Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (Office of the Ukrainian Presidency via AP, File)
FILE - Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, on Sept. 25, 2024, at UN headquarters. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
FILE - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg wrap up a joint press conference on July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
FILE - U.S. President Joe Biden, center, with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, front second left, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, front left, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, front second right, President of Poland Andrzej Duda, right, and other world leaders pose for a family picture of the launching of a Joint Declaration of Support for Ukrainian Recovery and Reconstruction, on Sept. 25, 2024, in New York. (Leon Neal/Pool Photo via AP, File)
FILE - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a joint press conference during the Crimea Platform summit in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)
