Defense against Russia
Poland stops arms deliveries to Ukraine
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyj (l.) and Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki after the purchase of Polish armored personnel carriers in April
© Michal Dyjuk / AP / DPA
Poland, previously a major supporter of Ukraine, is stopping its arms deliveries to the neighboring country, which was invaded by Russia. A simmering conflict between Warsaw and Kiev has reached a new level.
Poland doesn’t want to give them any more weapons for the time being Ukraine deliver. This was reported late on Wednesday evening by the AFP news agency, citing Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. “We are no longer transferring weapons to Ukraine because we equip ourselves with the most modern weapons,” Morawiecki said on the Polsat News channel.
The actual background is likely to be the recent tensions between Kiev and Warsaw over the Polish ban on imports of Ukrainian grain. In this context, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the UN general debate in New York: “It is alarming to see how some of our friends in Europe are playing a political theater of solidarity and making a thriller out of grain.” He accused these states (Poland, Hungary, Slovakia) of acting in Russia’s interests.
Poland summoned the Ukrainian ambassador
Poland then summoned the Ukrainian ambassador to the Warsaw Foreign Ministry on Wednesday – a first level of escalation in the language of diplomats and also unusual among allied states.
The EU and NATO country Poland has so far been one of Ukraine’s largest political and military supporters – it has also delivered fighter jets. It has also taken in a large number of war refugees from neighboring countries.
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There will be elections in Poland next month. The right-wing national PiS government is also hoping for the votes of farmers, an important group of voters. According to Morawiecki, these should be protected by the import ban on Ukrainian grain.
It is not yet possible to predict what consequences the Polish decision to stop supplying weapons to the neighboring country that was invaded by Russia will have. It also remains to be seen whether the decision will actually be upheld permanently.
The move is also likely to further cloud German-Polish relations. At the recent UN meeting, Chancellor Olaf Scholz left no doubt that the Federal Republic would continue to support Ukraine.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated since it was first published.