More than 9,000 citizens of Ukraine have illegally crossed the northern border in the two years since the war in Ukraine began, police chief Florin Koman, chief inspector of the Territorial Inspection of the Border Police (IPTF) in Sziget-Marmatsia, said.

“In the two years since the beginning of the war, more than 9,000 citizens of Ukraine have illegally crossed the northern border. In 2023, 2,043 cases of fraudulent crossing of the state border from Ukraine to Romania were registered, involving 3,868 citizens of Ukraine, 1,596 of them in Maramures County, 1,726 in Suceava County, and 546 at the border of Satu Mare County with Ukraine. At the time of discovery, they applied for temporary protection. Of the total number detected at the green border, 97.24% are citizens of Ukraine. The number of 95 citizens of Ukraine who were detected during an attempt to fraudulently cross the border from Romania to Hungary is added to the above values,” said Florin Koman at a press conference.

According to him, the number of Ukrainian citizens on the green border has decreased compared to 2022.

“In 2023, there is a slight decrease in the number of Ukrainian citizens detected at the green border, compared to 2022, when 4,500 were detected, of which 2,000 were detected at the Maramureş border with Ukraine, approximately 1,500 in the radius of Suceava County and 1,000 in the radius of Satu Mare County. Since the beginning of this year, there has been an increase in the number of Ukrainian citizens detected after illegally crossing the border at the northern border of Romania, compared to the same period in 2023. Thus, since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, more precisely, since February 24, 2022 and until now, more than 9,000 citizens of Ukraine (more precisely, 9,112) aged 18 to 60 have been found on the northern border of Romania in the counties of Maramures, Satu Mare and Suceava. , who told the border police that they fled Ukraine because of the war,” Florin Coman explained.

• Ukrainians aged 18 to 60 are prohibited from approaching the border with Romania and the Republic of Moldova

He specified that some citizens of Ukraine, who crossed the border with Romania through the mountainous terrain and the Tisza River, died, while others were rescued.

“Unfortunately, many of them put their lives in danger trying to cross the border, swimming through the cold and turbulent waters of the Tisza River or through the Maramures mountains, at an altitude of up to 1,900 meters, without the proper equipment for difficult treks. -accessible terrain, in winter conditions with very low temperatures. Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine and until now, we have experienced several tragic situations in which 16 Ukrainian citizens were found dead, 9 on the Romanian banks of the Tisza River and 7 in the Maramures Mountains, but we also have more than 52 actions (23 in 2023 and 29 in 2022) search and rescue of Ukrainian citizens in the Maramureş mountains, in which, together with Salvamont Maramureş, we managed to save 72 Ukrainian citizens lost in the alpine border zone,” said Florin Coman.

ITPF Sighetu Marmaţiei provides surveillance for 366 kilometers with Ukraine, the external border of the European Union, on the territory of Maramures, Satu Mare and Suceava counties. (Agerpress)