According to the Polish Department of Foreigners, from 2014 to August 23, 2015, 3,938 Ukrainian residents (2,318 in 2014 and 1,620 in 2015) applied for refugee status. Two of them were granted Polish citizenship.
Several dozen of the Ukrainian asylum seekers were ruled to be given various statuses which allow them to temporarily reside in Poland.
Earlier, from 2003 to 2013, only 663 Ukrainian residents applied for refugee status in Poland.
According to the EU rules, Poland has to accept asylum seekers. However, the question is what would be the consequences of such a policy.
"The consequences can be totally unpredictable. It is no secret they can be dangerous," Mirosław Orzechowski, a Polish politician and former lawmaker, told Sputnik Polska.
The case of Poland is different from the other EU country members, he said.
"One should clearly distinguish two problems – one is political asylum seekers, and the other is people who are forced to flee due to economic problems. Both questions should be understood and examined. We should bring help where it is needed," he explained.
According to the politician, currently Poland is totally unprepared to accept a great number of immigrants.
"Unlike France, Britain or Italy, Poland never started a war. Now, those countries are reaping the harvest of their previous actions. They are being flooded with immigrants who flee economic disaster and insecurity in their countries," Orzechowski said.
He underscored that there are over two million unemployed Poles and two million of migrants in the country.
The recent clashes in Kiev and the rise of radicalism in Ukraine may provoke a new surge of Ukrainian immigrants to Poland, Orzechowski warned.
"As the situation in Ukraine is getting worse, Poland should be ready to deal with new Ukrainian immigrants. Many of them would try to find a job here, but some of them would become criminals. As human beings we realize the problem, but first of all Poland should take care of its own people," he said.
The European Union cannot further accept immigrants because it would destabilize the situation in its member countries, he continued.
"Unrest would spread across European countries and pose a threat for governments which once adopted a reckless liberal stance and decided to open the borders. The result would be the rise of radicalism in their societies," he said.
What is more, the current situation is already dangerous for the Schengen visa area, the politician added.
Orzechowski assumed that the current EU border facility would dramatically change.
However, the politician warned against demonizing refugees and called to help them in their own countries.
"No doubt, we have the right to protect our civilization. At the same time we mustn’t turn a blind eye to what is happening in other countries. We should do everything possible to make the situation better where the refugees come from," he said.
