Irish Justice Minister Helen McEntee said at least 2,500 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Ireland so far and more will arrive later on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters at Dublin airport on Wednesday, McEntee said the Irish government was trying to process arrivals “as quickly as possible” and “give them what they need.”
Ireland has joined the EU’s initiative to provide temporary refugee protection by waiving visa requirements for up to three years.
At least two-thirds of those arriving from Ukraine are women, the justice minister said, adding that a third of all arrivals were looking for temporary housing.
“A lot of children come, so we have rooms with toys, cribs and cartoons. You know, people have been traveling for days, they’re exhausted, they’ve had a very traumatic experience,” McEntee told Irish Radio. station Newstalk in an interview on Wednesday.
According to Roderick O’Gorman, Ireland’s Equality Minister, officials from the Irish Department of Justice are present at the airport welcoming refugees and working with them to obtain national identification numbers and housing.
On Tuesday, O’Gorman told the Irish radio station RTÉ Radio 1 that the Irish government is creating a special unit in his department to work with Ukrainian refugees.
Ireland has “greatly expanded” its short-term hotel capacity, O’Gorman said, stressing that hotel accommodation remains the “short-term answer” to the problem.
The Irish government acknowledges the need for a “long-term response”, adding that there is more work to be done before making proposals to the government.