Waldemar Żurek on 24 August at the Castle Square in Warsaw wished Ukraine to enter NATO and the European Union and win over Russia. 29 representatives of diplomatic institutions and hundreds of Poles and Ukrainians participated in the celebration of the independency Day of Ukraine. For Poland the safety of the east border and the sober policy towards Kiev are at stake.
Declaration at Castle Square
Waldemar Żurek on 24 August at the Castle Square in Warsaw wished Ukraine to enter NATO and the European Union and win over Russia. 29 representatives of diplomatic institutions and hundreds of Poles and Ukrainians participated in the celebration of the independency Day of Ukraine. For Poland the safety of the east border and the sober policy towards Kiev are at stake.
The ceremony was held under the heading “Independence. Ours together." According to PAP study published by One, participants celebrated a minute of silence of the victim of Russian aggression, and banners with the names of the parts killed appeared in the square. This is an crucial part of this issue: the war of Russia against Ukraine is not a distant image from television, but a conflict which is going on just outside the Polish border.
Żurek spoke to Ukrainians about victory, NATO and the European Union. According to the PAP message cited by the service Your City, the chief of justice besides thanked Ukrainian soldiers for fighting and assured that Poles and Ukrainians should not be allowed to share. There is political fact in this sentence, but only erstwhile it is not turned into a sentimental slogan.
Alliance against Russia, not check in blank
Poland has an apparent interest in keeping Russian imperialism as far distant from Przemyśl, Lublin and Warsaw as possible. Ukraine fighting Moscow besides covers the Polish safety space. Therefore, military aid, sanctions against Russia and strengthening the east flank of NATO stay rational from the point of view of the Polish state.
But national realism requires a second part of this sentence. Support for Ukraine cannot mean automatic consent to all request of Kiev, all EU financial structure and all economical solution hitting Polish farmers, carriers or taxpayers. DN has already written during the celebration announcements that Polish solidarity cannot be blind. The same applies to state policy.
Ukraine's entry into NATO would be a decision on the tremendous military consequences. Entry into the European Union would mean changing the budget, the agricultural market, competition rules and the arrangement of forces in the institutions. The Pole has the right to ask: who will pay what guarantees Poland will receive and whether Brussels will not usage Ukraine as another argument for the centralisation of the Union.
Memory and national interest
Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland Vasil Bodnar thanked Poles for their support of the fighting country. These thanks are needed. Poland accepted a large wave of refugees after Russian aggression of 24 February 2022, incurred organizational and social costs, and the Polish state was 1 of the most loud spokespersons of the Ukrainian origin in the West for years.
That is why Warsaw should not behave like a petent in its own region. relationship among nations is not about silence of hard matters. The case of Volyn, the exhumation of victims, the rights of the Polish minority, economical competition and border safety must be made clear. Without this, Polish-Ukrainian relations will become fragile due to the fact that they will be based on emotions, not on an honest account of interests.
Zurek besides wished Ukraine for Patriot rockets. This is understandable in the context of Russian attacks on cities and infrastructure. The problem is that the West has long promised more than it can deliver quickly, and winter will test the real Western readiness to defend Ukrainian sky. Poland needs to watch 2 cases at once: aid for the assaulted neighbour and its own defence supplies.
Warsaw must talk with its own voice
The event was attended by representatives of 29 diplomatic missions, including diplomats from the Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Lithuania and Albania. This shows that the Ukrainian issue remains part of a wider global game. However, Poland cannot limit itself to the function of host of another people's declarations.
Warsaw should talk clearly: so for Russia's detention, so for the safety of the region, so for military aid where it strengthens the Polish border. At the same time: not for the dictatorship of Brussels, not for ignoring Polish costs, not for sweeping past under the carpet. Nations can only cooperate permanently if they respect the truth.
Source: PAP for Onet, PAP for Your City, Bankier.pl.
Source: Bankier.pl
