A recent survey indicates that a majority of Polish citizens oppose the deployment of Polish troops to Ukraine, with less than a fifth expressing support for such a measure. 

Conducted by the SW Research agency for media outlet Rzeczpospolita, the poll sought opinions on whether NATO nations should send troops to Ukraine. The findings reveal that 56% of Poles reject the notion of NATO involvement in Ukraine, while only 19% are open to the idea. Additionally, 25% remained undecided. Since the onset of the conflict in Ukraine, Russia has consistently framed its actions as a defence against NATO aggression, despite Ukraine not being a NATO member.

Regarding gender and age demographics, half of female voters and three out of five male voters oppose NATO troop deployment to Ukraine. Among young voters, 61 percent are against the idea. Defence Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz recently stated that Poland has no intention of sending its armed forces to Ukraine and clarified that NATO has no plans for such action either. 

He highlighted that the proposal to send troops originated from France rather than NATO. According to Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s preferred approach is to provide arms and training to Ukraine, with efforts underway to establish a Ukraine-NATO training centre in Bydgoszcz.

The survey was conducted following reported remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron suggesting that NATO states could consider deploying troops to Ukraine on a bilateral basis. However, most NATO countries dismissed this possibility in response to Macron’s statement.

Image: X @DGeneralneRSZ

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen