Poland’s ruling party pivots away from Ukraine in attempt to shore up votes

Andrzej Duda, Poland’s president, said Ukraine was like a ‘drowning person’. Photograph: Timothy A Clary/AFP/Getty Images

To hear the Polish president compare Ukraine to a drowning person and the Ukrainian president describe Poland as acting in Moscow’s interests will come as a shock to many.

Poland was one of the few western countries that had an ambassador who stayed in Kyiv through the first days of the Russian invasion, and its president, Andrzej Duda, has been a frequent visitor to the Ukrainian capital.