Ukrainians abroad targeted in draft notice scam – officials
Ukrainians living in Poland have been sent fake draft notices threatening criminal liability and deportation if they do not comply with a demand to report for conscription, Polish officials have claimed.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Poland’s Office for Foreigners shared a letter dated December 12 which warned an unnamed Ukrainian of a supposedly imminent visit by Polish officials.
”The purpose of this visit is to ensure your transfer to a mobilization point in connection with the obligation of military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” the fake document read.
It went on to warn that if a potential recruit does not comply, Polish officials could take “further steps” to enforce mobilization. Draft dodgers, the letter said, “may face criminal consequences, including extradition to Ukraine.”
The official stressed that his office “is not the author of such letters.” While resembling official documents, they contain neither the agency’s logo nor specific articles of Ukraine’s mobilization laws.
Kiev’s embassy in Poland also addressed the issue, stating that Ukrainian conscripts, reservists, or those eligible for military service “are not being sent draft summonses or notifications.”
It remains unclear who is behind the purported scam. The Office for Foreigners did not specify whether it has launched an investigation into the matter.
The Ukrainian government has long tried to persuade citizens who fled the country after the escalation of the conflict with Russia in 2022 to return home, with media reports suggesting it was pressuring the EU to cut financial aid to Ukrainian immigrants. As of October 2024, there were nearly 4.2 million Ukrainians who were granted temporary protection status in the EU, with Poland accounting for nearly 1 million.
Poland has also become home to the so-called ‘Ukrainian Legion’, a volunteer unit made up of Ukrainian citizens living in the country. According to officials in Kiev, the unit has received more than 1,000 applications, and some of its members have already been deployed to Ukraine.
