Ukraine has hit back at the Polish president after he suggested that decommissioned soldiers could contribute to a global crime wave once the war with Russia ends.
In an interview, Andrzej Duda said that Kyiv would need support for its peacetime security arrangements, drawing a link between the trauma suffered by troops on the front line and a potential increase in criminality in Europe and beyond.
But Ukraine’s foreign ministry robustly rejected the suggestion that ex-soldiers could become a threat, saying that they deserve the “highest respect.”
“Ukrainian soldiers and veterans are not a threat, but a security factor for Ukraine, Poland and the whole of Europe,” the ministry said in a statement.
“They are the key to a free and stable European future. We are convinced that the brave Ukrainian men and women who stood up to defend their country and the world against Russian invaders deserve the highest respect.”
The statement added that many Ukrainian soldiers have served on the frontline since Russia’s initial interference in eastern Ukraine over a decade ago and that their return to civilian life has not resulted in a crime wave.
“We would like to remind [you] that after 2014, when hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have already passed through the front, no significant increase in crime or threats to Poland or Europe has been observed,” it said.
“Furthermore, since the first years of Russian aggression, Ukraine has been prioritizing the adaptation, socialization and integration of soldiers and counts on further assistance from partners in this important matter.”
In his interview with the British daily, the Financial Times, Duda remarked that Ukrainian soldiers will be returning to cities and towns ruined by years of war and would be carrying trauma from the conflict.
He drew parallels to the early 1990s, when veterans were returning from the Soviet Union’s war with Afghanistan.
“Just recall the times when the Soviet Union collapsed and how much the organized crime rate went up in Western Europe, but also in the U.S.,” he said.
