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Poland to relocate 106 fellow citizens from eastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol

According to Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Shetyna, preparations for this move were carried out for a long time, since the fighting raged in the Donbas region
Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Shetyna EPA/FILIP SINGER
Polish Foreign Minister Grzegorz Shetyna
© EPA/FILIP SINGER

WARSAW, October 7. /TASS/. The Polish government has prepared a plan to relocate to the republic 106 Polish citizens living in Mariupol, a city in the Donetsk region, Foreign Minister Grzegorz Shetyna told the local television on Wednesday.

"The Polish government launches the campaign to relocate Polish nationals from Mariupol," he said. "This concerns 106 of our citizens," the minister added.

According to him, preparations for this move were carried out for a long time, since the fighting raged in the Donbas region. However, this became possible now that the situation calmed down.

The government prepared the adaptation program for them to learn the language and find a job.

Mariupol, a strategically important port city located on the north coast of the Sea of Azov, was the scene of heavy fighting between the Ukrainian army and the people’s militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) last spring. In May, the city briefly came under DPR control. However, on June 13 it was recaptured by the Ukrainian military. A ceasefire between the two sides came into effect on September 5. Despite the truce, minor skirmishes were reported on the outskirts of Mariupol in the following months.

On February 12, the leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine coordinated the Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements. In accordance with it, the ceasefire regime in southeastern Ukraine came into force on February 15.