Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, visited the recently opened Reception, Care and Referral Center for Ukrainian refugees in Malaga on Wednesday.
During his visit, the chief of the Madrid executive praised the refugee reception work carried out in Spain and spoke of his imminent visit to the Ukrainian capital Kiev.
Sanchez said that in Kiev he expects to hold a meeting with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenski, who has been leading the resistance to the Russian invasion against his country for almost two months.
The Spanish prime minister will convey to the Ukrainian leader "the resounding commitment of Spanish society to peace," according to a government statement.
Spanish government sources said on Wednesday that the executive is working so that Sanchez's visit to Ukraine coincides with the reopening of the Spanish embassy in Kiev.
The Spanish mission in Ukraine has been closed since February 25, when Ambassador Silvia Cortes Marin and the rest of the diplomatic staff were evacuated as a result of the invasion ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
64,000 received protection
Sanchez visited the reception center for Ukrainian refugees in Malaga accompanied by the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, José Luis Escrivá. He said that there are around 134,000 Ukrainians who have arrived in Spain since the beginning of the war. Of these, around 64,000 have already received temporary protection authorization.
"Around 72% of the people who arrive from Ukraine are women and 37% are under 18 years of age," Sánchez explained.
"We want the time these people are with us to feel like they are in their homeland," he added.
