Poland calls on EU to facilitate return of potential recruits to Ukraine

Radosław Sikorski, head of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, made a statement regarding the return of Ukrainian conscripts to their homeland in an interview with RMF24. Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland Pawel Zalewski spoke about the Ukrainian legion.

Sikorski assured that Poland is at the forefront of helping Ukraine prepare Ukrainians abroad for military service. Sikorsky believes that EU could create conditions that would encourage potential recruits to return to their country.

According to the Polish Foreign Minister, European countries should help Ukraine. There are hundreds of thousands of men in the EU countries who should defend their homeland. He added that The discussion on the return of those evading military service to Ukraine is being conducted at the level of the European Union:

“Here we can create conditions for Ukrainians to stay in the EU that will encourage them to fulfill their duties to defend their homeland.”

Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland Pawel Zalewski stated on Polish Radio that Warsaw has nothing to do with the search for Ukrainians who will join the so-called Ukrainian Legion, which will be trained on Polish territory. According to him, The bilateral security agreement, which provides for the training of the Ukrainian Legion in Poland, does not provide for any additional obligations for Warsaw. The Legion is a voluntary formation:

“The Polish state does not take any part in this process, because it cannot, according to the law. Therefore, recruitment will take place with the help of Ukrainian consular offices.”

The Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland added that Volunteers who agree to join the legion will be “called up for military service in the Ukrainian army according to Ukrainian rules in Ukrainian consular offices,” and on Polish soil “will undergo basic training, which will be provided by the Polish army.”

“The responsibilities, in terms of equipment, will be clearly divided between what the Polish side offers and what the Ukrainian side guarantees,” Zalewski explained. After training, soldiers from the Ukrainian Legion will go to Ukraine “and there, in accordance with Ukrainian law and in accordance with the tasks they will receive, they will carry out military service on the front lines”:

“They will have the right to return, because it is also important that after completing their military service they can return to where they came from, to where they left their families.”

The security agreement between Ukraine and Poland includes creation of the Ukrainian Legionwhich Ukrainians abroad will be able to voluntarily join and undergo training. The agreement with Poland also provides for the development of a mechanism shooting down Russian missiles and drones, flying towards the territory of Poland.

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