A legislative draft was recently submitted to parliament by Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) as well as opposition parties, the Civic Platform (PO) and the Left (Lewica). It aims to make it legal for Polish citizens to serve in the Ukrainian army without the need for a dispensation to do so.

The above-mentioned political groupings want it no longer to be a criminal offence to serve in the Ukrainian armed forces without an official permission. This new rule is to apply to all those who have served in the Ukrainian ranks since early 2014 and annexation of Crimea by Russia. Recruiting Polish or foreign subjects to the Ukrainian army is also no longer to be illegal. 

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For now, Polish citizens willing to serve in another country’s armed forces are required to ask permission from the Ministry of Defence. Non-compliance with this may be sanctioned by imprisonment for a period from three months to five years.

The political parties in favour of such a measure would represent valuable support for Ukraine’s efforts to repel the Russians from its territory and be in Poland’s national interest. The draft stresses that the Polish state would not be accountable for the potential consequences of such a service being offered to its neighbour. 

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Proponents of the proposed law emphasise that such a step is to be taken given the extraordinary situation in which Poland found itself as a result of Moscow’s overtly belligerent actions in the region. 

Image: Unsplash

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen