“Cooperation between the Ministries of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and Poland is gaining a new dynamic”, – Ihor Klymenko
This was stated by the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine during a meeting with Tomasz Siemoniak, the Minister of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland, on October 21, 2024, in Krakow.
In his opening remarks, Ihor Klymenko expressed gratitude to Poland for its continued support of Ukraine.
"Mr. Minister, I would like to express my gratitude for the invitation. Since the first day of the large-scale war, Poland has become one of our most reliable partners. It opened its gateways for us – most Ukrainian citizens crossed the Polish border in search of refuge", – Ihor Klymenko, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, began his address to the Minister of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland.
The Minister of Internal Affairs informed his Polish counterpart about the large-scale shelling of Ukraine and spoke about the training of operational services to ensure their readiness in the event of blackouts. The training was held in recent weeks with the participation of all emergency services, power engineers, state and local authorities.
“The enemy's primary goal is to destroy our civilian and energy infrastructure. Minister Siemoniak, I am aware that you pay considerable attention to civilian protection. We can work together, given that Ukraine has joined the EU Civil Protection Mechanism”, – said the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine suggested coordinating efforts and organising Ukrainian-Polish working groups in the near future to exchange experience in civil protection. Ukraine is currently working to create a new system for alerting the public about emergencies.
"We want to adopt the best practices of the European Union so that our citizens receive maximum information about possible threats and dangers", – said Ihor Klymenko.
Tomasz Siemoniak, the Minister of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland, during a discussion of emergency warning systems, noted Ukraine's achievements in civil protection during the full-scale war.
"We are interested in issues related to public warning systems. We see how much Ukraine has done, particularly when it comes to air raid warnings. So we are eager to learn from your experience," – said the Minister of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland.
In addition, Ihor Klymenko said that Ukraine would continue to share information on russian war criminals: since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, investigators of the National Police have recorded more than 133,000 war crimes.
One of the most important issues of the meeting was the fight against russia's hybrid threats: disinformation, crimes committed by citizens recruited on social media, and fake mining. A week ago, the police responded to about 2,400 bomb threats in a few hours. Law enforcement also detains recruited citizens who commit arson attacks on cars and infrastructure facilities on Russia's orders.
“Hybrid threats are a challenge not only for Ukraine”, – said Tomasz Siemoniak.
During the talks, the Ministers of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and Poland discussed issues of combating organised crime, border security, and challenges related to the use of UAVs. Ukraine is currently working on a draft intergovernmental agreement on combating crime, which should be signed in a few months.
Tomasz Siemoniak also supported Ihor Klymenko's proposal to send experts from higher education institutions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine to Poland to learn about the Polish system of specialised education, including the process of police training.
Ihor Klymenko, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, congratulated Poland on its upcoming EU presidency in 2025. Tomasz Siemoniak assured Ukraine of unwavering support, including on its path to the European Union.
"The goal should be clear: Ukraine as a member of the European Union. Ukraine as a member of NATO. Ukraine being a part of the West", – Tomasz Siemoniak said.
Summing up the meeting, Ihor Klymenko called on Tomasz Siemoniak to pay an official visit to Ukraine to get even more closely acquainted with the challenges faced by the units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the struggle of our military at the front, the work of the civil protection system, etc. Tomasz Siemoniak, the Minister of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland, accepted the invitation.
Communications Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs
