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Clips of the reports were widely circulated and heavily criticised across the region.įor instance, a television reporter on U.S. Their comments sparked a wave of condemnation on social media, accusing the West of bias. Ties like those have led some Western journalists to suggest that the humanitarian disaster in Ukraine is different to crises in Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan, because Europeans could relate more closely to the victims. The welcome has been eased by the fact that Ukraine is home to a large ethnic Hungarian community. 'I must reject drawing comparisons between those fleeing war and those trying to get into the country illegally,' he told a United Nations meeting in Geneva. Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto defended the different approaches.

Hungary and Poland both say that refugees from the Middle East who arrive at their borders have already crossed other safe countries which have a duty to provide shelter. In Hungary, which built a barrier along its southern border to prevent a repeat of the 2015 influx of people from the Middle East and Asia, the arrival of refugees from neighbouring Ukraine has triggered an outpouring of support and offers of transport, short-term accommodation, clothes and food. Poland's government, which came under heavy international criticism last year for pushing back against a wave of immigrants crossing over from Belarus, mostly from the Middle East and Africa, has welcomed those fleeing the Ukraine war. Syrians say most refugees only pass through Bulgaria to wealthier EU states. Last year 3,800 Syrians sought protection in Bulgaria and 1,850 were granted refugee or humanitarian status.

Bulgaria has said it will help everyone coming from Ukraine, where there are about 250,000 ethnic Bulgarians. 'These are Europeans whose airport has been just bombed, who are under fire,' he said.

London global refugees city 21st eastern europe