Currently, there is a steady trend in the development of Polish-Ukrainian relations in the areas of tourism, culture, and business. According to Polish border services, last year about 6 million Ukrainians visited Poland, of whom 3 million were tourists. As emphasized by the Vice President of the Polish Tourist Organization, Adam Zagajewski, Poland is interested in further promoting the Polish tourist product in Ukraine. “One of our primary tasks will be the creation of a Polish information center in Ukraine,” he stated. “The next year will be the Year of Poland in Ukraine, and we plan to hold various cultural events. Of course, Ukrainian tourists are familiar with the historical monuments of Warsaw and Krakow and willingly choose the mountain trails in Zakopane as a winter holiday destination. But we would like to introduce Ukrainian citizens to the tourist opportunities of Poland that are not yet so well known. These include holidays on the beautiful sandy beaches of the Baltic Sea, kayaking trips on the Masurian Lakes – the ‘green lungs of Poland’ – as well as horseback riding, yachting, and extreme tourism. And finally, this year we plan to expand youth exchanges between our countries.”
How the introduction of the visa regime will affect such plans is the main question that worried everyone present. According to the Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Kyiv, Minister-Counselor Sylwester Szostak, there is no particular cause for concern. “The visa regime is being introduced from October 1, and we began issuing visas already on September 1. This two-week period allowed us to identify ‘bottlenecks’ and make timely adjustments to the visa issuance process,” said Mr. Szostak. “At present, visas are issued at five Consulates General – in Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Lviv, and from September 15 – at the newly opened Consulate General in Lutsk. All consulates apply the same visa issuance conditions and requirements for submitted documents. Several service windows have also been equipped, so there is no reason to fear queues. As for the Kyiv Consulate General, I can assure everyone present that we are ready to issue up to 700 visas a day, and if necessary, up to a thousand. Some commotion in Lviv, which arose in the first days of visa issuance, is explained by the fact that in that region there are always a large number of people who visit Poland almost daily. Now the situation has stabilized, and there is no reason for concern. I would like to note that the appearance of the visa has changed somewhat, but this should not confuse those who received a visa of the previous type.