Enlarge image
Politician Duda:
Photo: Ida Marie Odgaard / EPA
Polish President Andrzej Duda, 51, has expressed doubts about Ukraine retaking Crimea, sparking criticism. In an interview with the YouTube project “Kanal Zero”, the national conservative politician was asked whether Ukraine would regain the Black Sea peninsula. Answer Duda: He doesn't know. Unlike the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, this is a special area. "Because historically it was in Russia's hands for more time."
The Ukrainian ambassador to Poland, Wasyl Zwarycz, appeared irritated. "Crimea is (part of) Ukraine: it is and remains so," he wrote on Platform X. The liberation of Crimea from Russian occupation is the common task and duty of the free world.
Duda himself later clarified Poland's position: "The Russian attack on Ukraine and the occupation of internationally recognized areas of Ukraine, including Crimea, is a crime," he said.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski emphasized that Poland recognizes Ukraine's independence within its internationally established borders, as set out, among other things, in the Budapest Memorandum of 1994. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, which resulted in international protests and sanctions. Since February 2022, Russia has been waging a full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine.
ssu/dpa