While tens of thousands of Ukrainians have fled their country following the invasion by Russia, others from Poland’s large Ukrainian community have been heading in the opposite direction, returning to defend their homeland.
Data from Poland’s border guard show that yesterday, while almost 30,000 people crossed from Ukraine to Poland, over 9,000 were recorded passing in the other direction.
At Zachodnia station in Warsaw, broadcaster TVN spoke with Ukrainians taking coaches back to their homeland. “This is my country. I love Ukraine. We can face Russia. We will fight for our country. One Ukrainian will be like 10 Russians,” said a 26-year-old named by TVN as Vladek.
"Będziemy walczyć". Ukraińcy wyjeżdżają z Warszawy, by wstąpić do wojska https://t.co/0PaQ44q1vP
— Maciej Tomaszewski (@tomaszewskim) February 24, 2022
Another man at the station, who was not named, said that his wife would stay in Poland while he and his son would go and fight in Ukraine. “You have to defend your country. I do not want to go to Russia, I want to live in Ukraine, in Europe,” he said.
Belsat, a Belarusian-language channel run by Poland’s state broadcaster, reported that cars have been queuing in both directions at the Medyka-Szeginie border crossing in southeastern Poland.
“Young boys are coming back [to Ukraine], men working abroad are coming back. They are now coming back to defend their country,” said Belsat reporter Ales Barazienka.
Belsat also reports that a number of Polish border towns have seen their stocks of fuel depleted at petrol stations as people stock up before heading to Ukraine, where there is now a shortage.
Over one million Ukrainians live in Poland, making them by far the country’s largest immigrant group (and one of the largest anywhere in Europe). Their numbers have increased particularly rapidly since Russia’s previous aggression against Ukraine in 2014.
The Polish authorities have for weeks been preparing to receive up to one million refugees from Ukraine in the event of war. Yesterday, following Russia’s invasion, they opened eight reception points at the border to provide support to people fleeing the conflict.
Thousands from Poland’s Ukrainian community have also been travelling to the border to collect friends and family from back home who are fleeing the war.
Main image credit: Jakub Orzechowski/Agencja Wyborcza.pl
Maria Wilczek is deputy editor of Notes from Poland. She is a regular writer for The Times, The Economist and Al Jazeera English, and has also featured in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, The Spectator and Gazeta Wyborcza.
