Poland summons Ukrainian ambassador in a tit-for-tat response

The Polish Foreign Ministry summoned Ukraine's Ambassador Vasyl Zvarych on Aug. 1 after Kyiv made the same move over a Polish official's suggestion that Ukraine should "start appreciating" Warsaw's support.

The Polish ministry wrote that the invitation was linked to "the statements made by representatives of the Ukrainian authorities" without providing any details.

Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki tweeted that the summons of the Polish ambassador "should never have taken place."

"In international politics, in the face of the ongoing war, and taking into account the enormous support that Poland has given Ukraine, such mistakes should not happen," said Morawiecki. "We will always defend Poland's good name, its security, and the interest of no other country will ever prevail over the interest of the Republic of Poland."

On July 31, Marcin Przydacz, the Polish Secretary of State and Head of the International Policy Bureau, was asked in an interview whether Warsaw's ban on Ukrainian grain imports had harmed the countries' relations. Przydacz claimed that Kyiv should "start appreciating the role that Poland has played for Ukraine in recent months and years."

Oleh Nikolenko, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, said that "statements about the alleged ingratitude of Ukrainians for Poland's help are false and unacceptable."

Andrii Sybiha, deputy head of the President's Office, also reacted to Przydacz's statement, calling it "an attempt to impose on Polish society the baseless opinion that Ukraine does not value help from Poland."

"The reality is an indisputable fact that every day Ukraine thanks Poland and other allied countries through its supreme sacrifice and bravery of our heroes on the battlefield. Polish weapons in the hands of the Ukrainian military effectively deter the Russian aggressor, and supporting us with weapons is not charity, but an investment in Poland's own security."