Spy suspect charged in Polish far-right migrant business row
Two Polish far-right activists, one a suspected Russian spy, have been charged with harassing a Ukrainian business owner, exposing the growing risks facing Europe's largest refugee workforce amid worsening diplomatic ties.
Polish prosecutors have charged two far-right activists with criminal defamation after they confronted a Ukrainian business owner in Poznań. The pair, Przemysław G. and Jarosław K., face up to one year in prison for targeting Nataliia Fedoriuk, who runs a company helping Ukrainian migrants obtain residence and work permits. Both men have pleaded not guilty.
A widely shared video showed the men demanding to inspect Fedoriuk’s offices to check for support of Stepan Bandera, a Ukrainian nationalist leader whose followers massacred Polish civilians during the Second World War. The activists accused her of "bringing foreigners here" and "mixing up ethnic structures". Fedoriuk, who has lived in Poland for a decade, refused them entry and said she "supports and respects Poles very much".
The case has drawn significant scrutiny because Jarosław K. was separately charged earlier this year with espionage on behalf of Russia. A former member of Poland’s volunteer Territorial Defence Force, he was active in a pro-Russian far-right group, though a court refused prosecutors’ request to place him in pretrial detention due to insufficient evidence.
Ukrainians are by far Poland’s largest foreign national group, making them essential to the country's labour market and economic growth. However, the incident illustrates the deteriorating environment for migrant-run businesses. Fedoriuk told the Rzeczpospolita daily that she now fears for her safety, though she stressed the incident does not reflect the attitude of the majority of Polish society.
The harassment occurs as Polish sympathy towards Ukraine declines and support for anti-Ukrainian far-right parties, such as Confederation, rises. Tensions spiked recently after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky named a military unit after a group linked to Bandera. Polish President Karol Nawrocki responded by stripping Zelensky of Poland's highest honour, though the two leaders met at a NATO summit in Turkey this week to attempt a compromise.
