Poland has in the past offered to help Ukraine to ensure that those subject to military service return to their country to fulfill their civic duty.
Poland is ready to help Ukraine return male citizens of military age and help their country in the war against Russia, Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysh said on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian government announced rules according to which passports for men of military age can only be issued within the country, and not at foreign diplomatic missions, Reuters notes.
As a result, men aged 18 to 59 living abroad will not be able to renew their passports or obtain new ones.
Poland has in the past offered to help Ukraine so that those subject to military service return to their country to fulfill their civic duty, Kosiniak-Kamysz said in an interview with Polsat News.
“I think many Poles are outraged when they see young Ukrainian men in hotels and cafes and hear how much effort we have to make to help Ukraine,” he said, without specifying how Poland would help.
According to the Eurostat database, as of January 2024, about 4.3 million Ukrainians live in the European Union, of which about 860 thousand are adult men. Poland has granted temporary protected status to 950,000 Ukrainians, the second highest figure after Germany.
“Any kind of support is possible,” Kosiniak-Kamysh said of how Poland would react if Kyiv asked for help in bringing home those who may lose the right to remain in Poland after their passports expire.
Ukrainian men in Poland
After the suspension of consular services for Ukrainian men abroad in Warsaw, 300 Ukrainians blocked the passport service of the State Enterprise “Document” with a demand to return their passports.
Evgeniy Semenyaka, a specialist in legalizing the stay and work of foreigners in Poland, noted that people are outraged because they paid money, but cannot receive their passport and documents for which they paid. According to him, there are now clashes at the passport service, and the police have even been called.
