Asked whether he believed Ukraine could take Crimea from Russia, a plan repeatedly raised by Kiev, Polish President Andrzej Duda said: "It is difficult to answer such a question, but I must say that from a historical perspective, most of the time it is. The peninsula belonged to Russia.
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): The President of Poland expressed doubt that Ukraine can take the Crimean Peninsula from Russia and said: Historically, the Crimean Peninsula has been a part of Russia for most of the time.
According to Rasha Today, the Polish president also argued: "I don't know if Ukraine can take Crimea under control, but I believe it can take Luhansk and Donetsk."
These two regions separated from Ukraine in 2014 and joined Russia after a referendum in late 2022.
Duda also said: Crimea is a special place for a number of historical reasons. In fact, if you look at this region from a historical perspective, you will realize that for most of the time it was Russia that controlled this peninsula.
These controversial comments caused reactions in Poland and Ukraine. The ambassador of Ukraine in Warsaw emphasized on the X channel (former Twitter) the goals of Kyiv to recover all the lands claimed by his country and wrote: "Crimea is for Ukraine and will remain for Ukraine." Recapturing Crimea is our common duty and obligation for the free world.
According to ISNA, in the meantime, Duda's internal political opponents, an ally of the nationalist Law and Justice Party, which handed over the elections to the pro-EU coalition known as the "Civil Coalition", criticized Andzhi Duda. One of the Polish legislators, a serious opponent of the Law and Justice Party and a current member of the Civil Coalition, warned that the historical approach to these lands could be dangerous for Poland's territorial integrity.