Almost 1,300 Ukrainians living in Poland, Denmark, Czechia, Germany, Lithuania, and other European countries have applied to join the Poland-based Ukrainian Legion, the Defense Ministry said on Jan. 10.
The legion was unveiled in July 2024 as a volunteer military unit made up of Ukrainians living in Poland and trained by the Polish Armed Forces. The first volunteer recruitment center was opened last October at the Ukrainian consulate in the eastern Polish city of Lublin.
The ministry announced on Jan. 10 that the second group of volunteers had already signed contracts in Lublin. For the first time, the new recruits included women who applied for medical and communications roles.
"Today, we accepted more recruits into the unit's ranks than in November," said Lieutenant Colonel Petro Pokrusha, a representative of the legion's command.
"This shows the growing confidence of our citizens in this initiative." The ministry has not revealed the number of contracts concluded so far.
After signing their contracts, new volunteers began training at the Polish Armed Forces' facilities under Polish instructors and using modern NATO weaponry.
The legion was launched as a way to engage Ukrainians living abroad in Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion amid increasingly critical manpower shortages.
The legion will allow Ukrainians to join the fight while being able to return to their place of residence abroad after completing their service. Under martial law instituted in 2022 after the start of the full-scale war, Ukrainian men aged 18-60 are not permitted to leave Ukraine without permission.
The U.N. estimates that 6.7 million Ukrainians were driven abroad as a result of Russia's all-out invasion. This is in addition to a sizeable diaspora living in Europe, the U.S., Canada, and elsewhere since before 2022.
Dinara Khalilova
