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12 Jan. () –
The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has assured this Thursday that it has received congratulations from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi, for his collaboration in welcoming Ukrainian citizens who have been forced to leave their country due to the war.
Grandi held a meeting with the Belarusian permanent representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Larysa Belskaya, before whom “he greatly appreciated the support provided by Belarus to Ukrainian refugees.”
During their conversation, Grandi and Belskaya also discussed the steps to follow to strengthen coordination in the face of “the largest refugee crisis in Europe” and in the face of a “significant increase in refugee status”, according to the Belarusian Foreign Ministry in a statement. .
“Grandi has confirmed UNHCR’s willingness to expand cooperation with Belarus on a wide range of current issues and support the efforts of the Belarusian authorities to guarantee the correct reception and integration of refugees,” reads the aforementioned letter.
On the other hand, Grandi has responded to some of the demands conveyed by Belskaya, such as the need to strengthen the capacities of the ministries dedicated to migration and refugee reception competencies, as well as the importance of improving the registration and concession system. of asylum.
Finally, both representatives have agreed on the importance of protecting the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, including in the Belarusian border area with the countries of the European Union.
On this point, Grandi and Belskaya have highlighted the “counterproductive and discriminatory” nature of building walls, which do nothing more than deny refugees and asylum seekers access to the territory; at the same time that they have insisted on the “inadmissibility of ill-treatment and the violent expulsion of said people”.
