Former Polish foreign minister Jacek Czaputowicz has criticised Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s decision that Polish troops would not participate in any stabilisation peace-keeping mission in Ukraine.
Czaputowicz said it would damage Poland’s international standing and undermine the country’s security.
The ex-foreign minister in the previous Polish Conservative (PiS) government was interviewed by Polish public radio broadcaster Trójka on February 19.
He argued that, despite concerns about a peace deal currently being discussed bilaterally by the US and Russia in Saudi Arabia, Poland should participate in any eventual support mission in Ukraine.
Czaputowicz said it was pointless concentrating on the negatives of “Putin being let back into global salons” regarding the talks.
He said that was because there was a need to acknowledge the reality that “Ukraine’s negotiating position today was far weaker than in 2022 when it succeeded in repelling the initial attack and even managed a counter-attack in which it recovered some lost territory, whereas now it was Russia that after fortifying its positions in Ukraine was pressing home its demographic, economic and military advantage”.
Given that reality and the need to secure peace without surrendering Ukraine, Czaputowicz referred to Tusk’s stance at the Paris summit hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron on February 17 of Poland rejecting any participation by its troops in any European stabilisation mission in Ukraine.
He described that position as “a grave error” that betrayed “the political opportunism and short-sightedness of Poland’s political class”.
Czaputowicz acknowledged that “Polish public opinion on Ukraine has shifted” and therefore “all political parties ahead of a crucial presidential election were not prepared to entertain the idea of Polish troops risking their necks in Ukraine, even in a peace-keeping mission”.
He added, though, that he felt “the reaction was wrong because there will be consequences of this failure of leadership”.
“Poland is currently the presidency country in the EU and should therefore lead the way rather than withdrawing,” he said.
Czaputowicz argued: “If the peace mission happens, then Czechs, the Baltic States and Scandinavians will participate alongside the British and French – with Poland sticking out like a sore thumb as a front-line State by not participating and contributing to regional security.”
He said he believed it would also not go down well with the US. “We’ve just had [US] defence secretary Pete Hegseth praising Poland for being warriors and a strong ally and then Poland says it will not share in the task of keeping the peace in Ukraine.”
But he added that he felt it could be even worse for Poland if ,“as a result of Russia being hostile to the idea of such a peace-keeping force and the reluctance of the likes of Poland and Germany to participate, the mission never happens”.
That, Czaputowicz maintained, would mean “a weak Ukraine, possibly under effective Russian control and Europe and the Americans blaming Poland for having failed to step up and contribute to collective security”.
He said that would lead to a situation in which “Poland’s security will clearly have been weakened and its reputation and status much reduced”.
Poland was at the forefront of the effort to assist in Ukraine in the immediate aftermath of the Russian invasion in 2022. It has hosted almost two million Ukrainian refugees and given military aid amounting to almost 300 tanks and a dozen MIG fighter aircraft.
Still, despite praise for Poland’s response, it did not receive any financial assistance from the European Union for its efforts over Ukraine.
Polish politicians were also later disappointed by the fact that Kyiv largely refused to address Polish sensitivities over Second World War atrocities and concerns over Ukrainian grain imports.
As a result, all Polish political parties have become more reserved about offering further assistance to Ukraine.
Ahead of the Polish presidential election in May, all the candidates have been in broad agreement that Polish soldiers should be kept out of any missions to Ukraine.
