Ukrainian refugees cross border into Hungary

Описание: (25 Feb 2022) Ukrainian refugees crossed the border into neighboring Hungary on Friday in the wake of Russia's attack on their country, some tearful as they face uncertainty, with all but a suitcase left behind.
Hungary, like many other countries in eastern Europe, has extended legal protection to those fleeing the Russian invasion, and is accepting refugees - who are coming by car, bicycle and on foot - at all five land crossings along the 137-kilometer (85-mile) border between the two countries.
Transcarpathia, Ukraine's westernmost region which borders Hungary, is home to some 150,000 ethnic Hungarians, many of whom are Hungarian citizens.
While Russia's invasion has not yet extended to the area, which is separated from the rest of Ukraine by the Carpathian Mountains, many have decided not to wait for the situation to get worse.
In a decree published late Wednesday, Hungary's government announced that all Ukrainian citizens arriving from Ukraine, and all third-country nationals legally residing there, would be entitled to protection.
The section applying to third-country nationals makes it possible for non-Ukrainians - for example, Belarussian refugees living in Ukraine - to receive protection in the European Union.
However, Ukraine's government has announced that men aged 18-60 would not be permitted to leave the country, a move meant to make them available for military conscription to enter the fight against Russian forces.
Hungary has in the past taken a firm stance against all forms of immigration and has refused to accept refugees and asylum seekers from the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said that Hungary will play no part in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, but that it would accept refugees arriving at its borders.
Hungary has deployed its armed forces to eastern territories near the Ukrainian border to assist with refugee arrivals.
In an interview with Hungarian television station ATV on Wednesday, Defence Minister Tibor Benkő said that "tens of thousands" of refugees could be expected, which the army would assist in securing food, shelter and other care.

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