Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said new consulates are being opened wherever Ukraine's diaspora — and demand for consular services — is expanding. He described the Poznan opening as part of a broader effort to protect Ukrainian citizens' rights abroad and bring services closer to people, making them more accessible and less time-consuming.
The office, at ul. Marcelińska 90, is staffed by three people and takes visitors by appointment Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., except Wednesdays, when hours run from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. It handled its first case Thursday: a woman seeking a passport for her child.
Consul Serhii Miniailo said preparations, including finding a suitable site, had taken several months. The consulate is currently working out of temporary space and will later move to a larger, permanent location on another floor of the same building, ahead of an official opening ceremony.
"We didn't want to wait to start serving Ukrainian citizens — there are too many matters to handle. Already on the first day, we are fully booked with visitors", Miniailo said, adding that the office would also serve as a polling station for Ukrainian citizens and would handle passport applications, birth registrations and legal consultations, including for lost documents.
Miniailo also addressed a rise in incidents involving Polish and Ukrainian citizens, saying growing aggression and hate speech serve no good purpose. He said Poland's economic strain from Russia's war against Ukraine was affecting Polish public sentiment but should not be allowed to damage relations between the two peoples, noting that Ukrainians in Poland were an easy target simply for being foreigners and that social tensions, once inflamed, are hard to calm.
"We intervene in cases where the rights and interests of Ukrainian citizens are violated. We cooperate with Polish services [...] both uniformed services and local authorities have responded quickly and professionally to my requests", he said.
He also repeated a message from Ukraine's ambassador to Poland, Vasyl Bodnar, who has told Ukrainians they remain guests in Poland — noting that while Poland grants legally resident foreigners a broad set of rights, it also expects them to meet certain obligations.
More information on the consulate is available here.
(jh)
Source: PAP