RZESZOW (Poland): Japanese Foreign Minister HAYASHI Yoshimasa said Sunday his country will pursue until the end the possibility of letting Ukrainian evacuees in Poland wishing to come to Japan board his flight back to the Asian nation on a government plane.

“We’re currently making arrangements” to bring the trip plan into reality, Hayashi, now visiting Poland as a special envoy of Prime Minister KISHIDA Fumio, told reporters in the city of Rzeszow.

Earlier on Sunday, the Japanese foreign minister visited Medyka in southeastern Poland, located on the border with Ukraine, where many tents are set up by support groups and foodstuffs are being distributed to Ukrainian evacuees fleeing Russia’s invasion of their country. At an immigration office, a staff member explained to Hayashi how evacuees are being accepted into Poland.

“I renewed my determination to offer maximum assistance to people who had no choice but leave their country and evacuate, so that they can return to the lives they had (before the war) as soon as possible,” Hayashi told reporters.

He then visited the Japanese government’s liaison office in Rzeszow, also in southeastern Poland, and met with Japanese Foreign Ministry officials who are offering assistance to Japanese people staying in Ukraine. He also had talks with officials of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and other international organizations.

On Saturday, Hayashi visited a facility in the Polish capital of Warsaw where Ukrainian evacuees are staying.

Also on Saturday, Hayashi met with representatives of international and nongovernmental organizations, including the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, to exchange opinions about the needs of Ukrainian evacuees and issues facing them. After that, he told reporters: “I was able to learn that the support offered by the Japanese government is being effectively used in assisting women, children and other evacuees. The talks were very meaningful as I also got to hear about what remains to be done.”

In addition, Hayashi met with Japanese Foreign Ministry officials who are working in Poland to assist the acceptance of Ukrainian evacuees into Japan to provide encouragement for them. He urged the officials to carefully listen to the voices of evacuees.

On Monday, Hayashi will pay a courtesy call on Polish President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and hold talks with Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau.

He is scheduled to return to Japan on Tuesday.

JIJI Press