Poland offers to help Ukraine bring back draft-age men to serve in war

Apr 25, 2024 | Defence, Society

The Polish defence minister says that his country is ready to help Ukraine bring back men who are subject to compulsory military service but are living in Poland.

“Grievances [among Ukrainians] against compatriots leaving the country to avoid being drafted are justified,” Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz told broadcaster Polsat. “Ukrainian citizens have duties to their state.”

The minister added that many Poles are also “outraged when they see young Ukrainian men in cafes [in Poland] and hear about how much effort it takes us to help Ukraine”.

“We have long suggested that we are able to help the Ukrainian side in ensuring that those who are obliged to perform military service go to Ukraine,” he added. Asked if Poland would agree to a request from Ukraine to help transport men back home, the minister said that “anything is possible”.

Kosiniak-Kamysz’s remarks come after the Ukrainian government approved legislation under which men aged 18-60 who wish to leave Ukraine or are outside Ukraine will only be able to obtain a Ukrainian passport within their own country. The law will enter force in mid-May.

Polish media reported this week that large queues were forming at Ukrainian consulates in Poland as the issuing of passports was halted due to an IT system failure.

The Ukrainians gathered at the consulates, however, were sceptical of the official information given by the consular services about the malfunction, telling media outlets that they suspected it was actually related to the new mobilisation law.

“I called friends in Ukraine and the same system is working there. They are lying to us. They want to force us to return to the country at any cost,” 34-year-old Wadym told news website Wirtualna Polska.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, referred to the issue on Tuesday, saying that, while “protecting the rights and interests of Ukrainian citizens abroad has always been and remains a priority…the main priority is to protect our homeland from destruction”.

If “a man of conscription age went abroad, showed his state that he does not care about its survival, and then comes and wants to receive services from this state, it does not work this way. Our country is at war”, added Kuleba. “Staying abroad does not relieve a citizen of his or her duties to the homeland.”

After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Poland became the primary destination for those fleeing the conflict. It is estimated that around one million Ukrainian refugees remain in the country, as well as around a million other Ukrainian immigrants from before the war.

According to Eurostat data, about 4.3 million Ukrainians who fled Ukraine as a consequence of the Russian invasion are living in European Union countries as of January 2024, with around 860,000 of them adult men.


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Main image credit: / flickr.com (under public domain)

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