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Half of Poles for sending Ukrainian conscripts back

16.05.2024 17:00
50.7% of Poles support returning draft-age Ukrainian men to their country's army, Poland’s PAP news agency reported on Thursday.
Pixabay license.
Pixabay license.Image by Luaks Johnns from Pixabay

Meanwhile, 39% oppose this idea and 10.3%  are undecided, the agency writes, quoting a survey conducted by IBRiS for the Rzeczpospolita daily.

Those who advocate for facilitating the return are primarily women (59%), people over seventy (64%), residents of small towns (63%), individuals with at least three school-aged children (95%), and those with primary education (65%), PAP says.

"The supporters are mostly devout, regularly practicing their faith (56%), and politically identify as centrists (57%)", the newspaper notes.

In contrast, the opponents of the move are mainly young people aged 18-29 (88%), residents of medium-sized towns (55%), those with two school-aged children (70%), individuals with higher education (45%), and those who consider themselves to have right-wing views (49%).

The newspaper recalled that Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz last month mentioned a possibility of Poland assisting Ukrainian authorities with this matter, although declining to provide any details.

He underscored his empathy for both the Ukrainian soldiers engaged in combat and Polish citizens "disturbed" by the presence of potential conscripts in civilian settings.

"I also understand the frustration of Poles who see young Ukrainians of draft age in hotels and cafés, while their counterparts fight on the front lines," Kosiniak-Kamysz said at the time.

"Ukrainian citizens have duties towards their state, and it is the duty of every citizen in a given country to fulfill these," he added.

The IBRiS survey was conducted on May 10-11, 2024, with a sample size of 1,071 respondents.

(mo)

Source: PAP