Some believe that fleeing Ukrainians should be given temporary collective protection. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre waited and referred to the discussions in the EU.

Over the past six days, more than 660,000 Ukrainians have fled their homeland and crossed borders into neighboring countries, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said Tuesday. Many have arrived in Poland, Moldova and Romania, and some have moved to other European countries.

Some in the Storting believe it is time for Norway to open up to providing temporary collective protection to Ukraine, as it did in the 1990s during the wars in the Balkans. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Labor Party) stood waiting.

– Now we have good contacts with other European countries on how to fulfill this. Several million Ukrainians have Schengen passports and the right to live in Europe for a while. How we deal with and distribute what happens to migration flows is being discussed in European circles where Norway is involved, said the Prime Minister.

He referred to the refugee situation which was the topic of discussion when Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) was in Brussels, Sunday.

– The experience of the Balkan wars is one of the things we look at, said Støre.

– How many refugees can Norway accept?

– We haven’t seen the number, Støre said.

Proposal to Save

Red announced that they would present the proposal at Storting on Wednesday.

– We believe that it is important to simplify the process so that Ukrainians can easily and quickly reach Norway. Ukraine as a people is entitled to collective protection, Tobias Drevland Lund, spokesman for Rødt’s immigration policy, told NTB.

In addition to the proposal to implement a collective protection section, the party asked the government to present a plan for how the city and the Immigration Directorate could quickly be activated to accept refugees. Drevdal said many cities had signaled they wanted to help, but that capacity in many places was lacking after reception was halted after the influx of refugees in 2015 declined.

Used for refugees from the Balkans

Section 34 of the Immigration Act allows for collective protection in mass flight situations. It was introduced in the 1990s when Norway accepted refugees from Bosnia and later from Kosovo.

The SV also wants Norway to implement the scheme, and immigration policy spokeswoman Grete Wold has asked the Minister of Justice answer how much emergency capacity does Norway have to accept refugees. On Tuesday, he sent another question to the Justice Minister, in which he asked for an answer on whether the government would implement the passage.

– We ask the government to provide collective accommodation for those who are now fleeing Ukraine. We have a law designed for such a solution in Norway, and we have all the prerequisites to solve it in a simple and efficient way. said Wol.

– Norway received refugees on the same basis from Bosnia in the 90s. “It’s very clear that we have to take responsibility with Europe here, so this is a good place to start,” he added.

Support from KrF and MDG

KrF and the MDGs also support the use of temporary collective protection options.

– KrF believes that we should provide collective temporary protection to all Ukrainians who come to Norway as we did during the Balkan wars in the 90s. Ukrainian refugees should settle down immediately and be allowed to stay in Norway until it is safe to return home, said KrF leader Olaug Bollestad.

The MDGs believe that it is important to provide reassurance to Ukrainian citizens when they come to Norway, at the same time as we assist with emergency assistance in neighboring countries.

– We support the implementation of the articles in the Immigration Act based on human considerations and the extraordinary situation we are facing, said Deputy Chair Arild Hermstad.

Left wants to bring refugees here

The Liberal Party also believes that collective protection is a good idea because it provides the opportunity to deal with large numbers of refugees at once, with less bureaucracy. Abid Raja argues that Norway should also queue for buses to bring refugees here.

– Instead of millions of people in vulnerable situations having to go through Europe alone, we should in an acute phase consider bringing Ukrainian refugees from border areas to Norway. This is how white buses brought people home from the war-torn continent at the end of World War II, King said.

Conservative Party immigration policy spokeswoman Mari Holm Lønseth said she considered that the government would make an ongoing assessment of the matter.

– What matters most to the Conservatives are refugees who come, settle and integrate quickly. We must hope that many refugees will arrive in the future. Therefore, he said, the municipal government must prepare well.

The organization asks the government to be open

If there is a mass flight situation, the government can provide temporary collective protection. This means that Ukrainians will be able to obtain a residence permit without individual assessment. The permit is basically for one year, but can be extended for up to three years. Furthermore, a temporary permit may be granted which can form the basis for a permanent residence permit.

Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, said this was the situation that led to the war in Ukraine. He thinks the government should take advantage of it.

“Of course Norway must be open about this,” he told NTB, Monday.

The Norwegian Asylum Seekers Organization (NOAS) also believes that this could be a good alternative to ensure that Norway can “act quickly and generously” in a situation where we are rapidly approaching half a million refugees.

– We’re facing a mass flight. So it is relevant to think about providing temporary collective protection, says Pål Nesse our country.