Europe extends protection for Ukrainians as Russia intensifies attacks on towns and cities. The Council of the European Union has endorsed the European Commission’s proposal to extend temporary protection for over 4 million Ukrainians until 4 March 2027. These individuals have taken refuge in the EU, fleeing Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine.

What has been decided:

• The protection status is extended for one year, from 2026 to 2027 
• The conditions remain unchanged: Ukrainians retain their rights to residence, education, healthcare, and employment
• No new restrictions or exclusions have been introduced

While Russia continues to terrorize Ukraine’s civilian population with indiscriminate airstrikes, the European Union reaffirms its solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

“We will continue to offer protection for millions of Ukrainian refugees for another year,” emphasizes Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak.

Poland, which currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency, also initiated discussions on a strategy for phasing out temporary protection, once peace is achieved. In the coming months, the EU will work toward joint, coordinated decisions on this matter, particularly regarding the return of refugees to Ukraine.

Since March 2022, the EU has granted shelter to more than 4 million Ukrainian refugees under the Temporary Protection Directive. This protection was originally set to expire on 4 March 2026, but will now be extended by another year.

The extension does not alter the scope of the original March 2022 decision—the rights of those eligible for temporary protection remain unchanged.

Former Polish President Lech Wałęsa has called for a recount or a repeat of the second round of the presidential election, in which the conservative candidate Karol Nawrocki emerged victorious.

“I have no doubt! The results of the second round of the election should be accurately recounted, with attention to suspicious figures, or the second round should be repeated with greater scrutiny,” Wałęsa says.

Meanwhile, Polsat News reports irregularities in the vote count. According to the Election Commission in Kraków, in the first round, Rafał Trzaskowski led with 550 votes, while Karol Nawrocki came third with 218. But in the second round, Nawrocki received 1,132 votes, compared to Trzaskowski’s 540.

Polish Minister of Digital Affairs Krzysztof Gawkowski notes these figures and described some results as “quite improbable.” He officially appealed to the National Electoral Commission to investigate such cases.

“It’s important to understand why there was sometimes a 200% increase in support for a single candidate at one polling station — even from a mathematical standpoint, this seems rather implausible,” he said.

Rafał Trzaskowski’s campaign, Nawrocki’s main rival, urged citizens to report irregularities via a specially created website.

All such reports are forwarded to the National Electoral Commission, though the Commission emphasized that Poland’s Supreme Court will review the final results.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that all documented violations must be investigated.

Earlier, Poland officially designated a memorial day for the victims of the “genocide committed by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army,” stating that Ukrainian nationalists “killed over 100,000 Poles,” VSN reports. 

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already criticized the decision, stating that it “contradicts the spirit of good neighborly relations” between the two countries.