"Then train to defend your own country," Zelensky replied to the Polish candidate who claimed he doesn't see Ukraine in the EU and NATO.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky commented on the words of Polish presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki regarding Ukraine's membership in the EU and NATO, stating that if Ukraine is not part of these structures, there is a risk that Russia could be on the border with Poland – and Nawrocki would have to defend his own country.

Zelensky made this statement in an interview with the Polish press while on a one-day visit to Warsaw.

The candidate from the Law and Justice party, Karol Nawrocki, stated at a press conference in Turek (Greater Poland Voivodeship) that "until our issues, including the exhumation of the victims of the Volhynian genocide, are resolved," he does not see a future for Ukraine in the European Union and NATO.

"If Ukraine is not in the EU and NATO, it will mean that it has no security guarantees," Zelensky explained. "If Ukraine lacks security guarantees, it will be left to face Russia alone."

"And if an ally, and Poland is an ally, does not want to see us in the alliance, then Mr. Nawrocki should start preparing, because there may come a time when he personally will have to take up arms to defend his country. Because if Ukraine is nowhere to be found, there is a high risk that Russia will be at the border with Poland right after Ukraine. And then it won't be political competition but a struggle for survival," Zelensky commented.

In turn, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reacted to Karol Nawrocki's statement regarding the impossibility of our country's accession to the European Union and NATO without resolving the issue of exhuming the victims of the Volhynian tragedy.

According to the Foreign Ministry's website, these claims "are tendentious and manipulative and indicate that the Polish politician prioritizes opportunistic considerations over the security interests of his country."

The government emphasized that there is a constructive dialogue ongoing between the Ukrainian and Polish sides regarding issues of shared historical past. This topic "should not be used in domestic political battles."

On Wednesday, Zelensky visited Warsaw, where he met with Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Andrzej Duda.

During the press conference with Prime Minister Tusk and the Ukrainian president, they were asked whether he would set conditions for Ukraine regarding the Volhynian issue in the context of its EU accession process.

"We will resolve it, as we are in the process of addressing the issue of honoring the memory and dignified burial of those who became victims of the Volhynian crime. We must do this together, to fully understand it," Tusk said.

Background. It has been reported that Ukraine has granted permission for the exhumation of the victims of the Volhynian tragedy. Work in the Ternopil region will begin as early as April.