Ukraine angered by Polish official’s call to “start appreciating” Poland’s help

Ukraine has reacted angrily to remarks by a senior Polish official who suggested that Kyiv should “start to appreciate” the help his country has provided during the war.

A senior aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky has called the comments “opportunistic”, “manipulative” and “treacherous”, while also suggesting that they serve Russia’s interests. The Ukrainian foreign ministry said it had today “invited” Poland’s ambassador to discuss the “unacceptable” remarks.

The episode represents the latest development in a dispute over a ban on the import of Ukrainian grain to Poland and four other eastern EU member states. Warsaw has called for the ban to be extended beyond its current end date of 15 September. Kyiv wants to be allowed to resume exports.

Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania have called on the EU to extend their ban on imports of Ukrainian grain

“We will not open this border. If the European Commission does not extend the ban, we’ll do it ourselves,” says Poland’s prime minister https://t.co/aDxX0MZzTU

— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) July 19, 2023

Marcin Przydacz, the head of Polish President Andrzej Duda’s international policy office, was asked about the issue yesterday during an appearance on state broadcaster TVP.

“What is most important today is defending the interests of the Polish farmer,” said Przydacz. “When it comes to Ukraine, Ukraine has really received a lot of support from Poland. I think it would be worth them starting to appreciate the role that Poland has played for Ukraine in recent months and years.”

Pressed further, Przydacz repeated that “we must stand firmly in the interest of the Polish state here and Ukraine should start appreciating what Poland does for it”, reports the Wprost weekly.

President Zelensky has submitted a bill to parliament that would grant Poles special legal status in Ukraine – including access to benefits, healthcare and employment – to show gratitude for „their solidarity and support in the face of Russian aggression” https://t.co/m5S4LHfVfd

— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) July 12, 2022

His remarks prompted an angry response from Andrii Sybiha, the deputy chief of staff to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“We categorically reject the attempts of some Polish politicians to impose…the baseless opinion that Ukraine does not appreciate the help from Poland,” he wrote, adding that such claims are “opportunistic” and “manipulative”.

Sybiha noted that, when Poland supplies Ukraine with weapons, this “is not charity, but an investment in Poland’s own security” because “Ukrainians are protecting the values and security of our region, and they do so in the interests of Poland and the entire free world”.

“Ukrainians are giving their lives today, including for their Polish friends, [and] this is the highest form of gratitude,” he continued. “It is very unfortunate that some politicians deliberately ignore this, demanding something even more from Ukraine.”

“Consciously or unknowingly, they become a ‘tool’ of the Russian aggressor. They choose the side of evil,” added the Ukrainian official. “When Ukraine is at war, trying to ‘bargain’ something more from it is tantamount to treachery.”

Sybiha also added that Ukrainians do regularly express their gratitude to Poland, including the “daily gratitude from Ukrainians who found temporary shelter in Poland and will always remember the openness of the hearts and homes of Poles”.

But he noted that, with his country at war, Poland closing its border to Ukrainian produce furthers the suffering of Ukrainians. “There is nothing worse than having your rescuer demand a rescue fee from you even when you are bleeding.”

Subsequently, the spokesman for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, Oleg Nikolenko, announced that the Polish ambassador to Kyiv, Bartosz Cichocki, had been “invited to the ministry in connection with [Przydacz’s] statements”, which Nikolenko said “do not reflect reality and as such are unacceptable”.

Ukraińskie MSZ zaprosiło ambasadora Polski. Chodzi o wypowiedzi o „niewdzięczności Ukraińców” https://t.co/FzIo5WpXdV

— Onet Wiadomości (@OnetWiadomosci) August 1, 2023

Both Nikolenko and Sybiha, however, emphasised that relations with Poland remain strong. Warsaw has been one of Kyiv’s closest allies since Russia’s invasion, providing military, humanitarian and diplomatic support.

But one area of tension has been over Ukrainian agricultural exports, which before the war were largely shipped across the Black Sea but are now often transported by land through the EU and in particular Poland.

Earlier this year, farmers in Poland and some other eastern EU member states protested that the arrival of Ukrainian grain was lowering prices on the market. That led Poland to introduce a unilateral import ban, which was later given the EU’s blessing.

That ban expires in September, and Poland wants it to be renewed. It has warned that, if Brussels does not approve an extension, Warsaw will introduce another unilateral ban, despite trade being an exclusive competence of the EU. Ukraine, however, has lobbied for the ban not to be extended.

Germany and France are opposed to extending the ban on importing Ukrainian grain, as Poland has demanded

„We’re ready to help Poland financially but it’s unacceptable to throw electoral problems on Ukraine’s shoulders,” says Germany’s agriculture minister https://t.co/JqNEJBdk98

— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) July 26, 2023

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Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.