Poland’s Foreign Ministry said Warsaw is ready to start training military units made up of Ukrainians of conscription age living in the country – Notes From Poland.
At a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague, Radoslaw Sikorski came across the question of whether it is possible to deploy NATO troops in Ukraine, including Polish troops.
“Poland considered the Ukrainian request regarding training, but we came to the conclusion that it would be safer and more efficient to train a Ukrainian unit composed of Ukrainians in Poland who are subject to conscription into the Ukrainian army,” he said, but he did not reveal any further details about the plans.
February this year, Poland’s Office for Foreigners (UdSC) published data showing that about 950,000 Ukrainians are in Poland as refugees and another 536,000 have temporary or long-term residence permits. Among those with refugee status, 63 per cent are women and children. It did not disclose the age composition of the remaining 37 per cent, consisting of adult men, or the demographics of Ukrainians with residence permits.
Last month, Polish Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said that the Polish government was ready to help Ukraine return men subject to compulsory military service but residing in Poland. He noted that among both Poles and Ukrainians there are “justified grievances” against those who evade conscription.
Earlier this week, Sikorski commented on reports that Poland was among the NATO countries considering sending its own troops to Ukraine. He said the idea “should not be ruled out.”
Poland has become one of Kyiv’s closest allies since the conflict with Russia began in 2022. Warsaw provides Ukraine with humanitarian, military, financial and diplomatic support. The policy of supporting Kyiv began under the previous Law and Justice (PiS) government and continued under the new administration led by Donald Tusk.
