Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andriy Syvka, has taken a stand after 15‑year‑old Daria Gladyr—a Ukrainian national with Polish citizenship—was harassed at a Warsaw school, prompting diplomatic action.
School Harassment Scandal
15‑year‑old Daria Gladyr, daughter of former PlusLiga volleyball player Yuri Gladyr, allegedly received abusive voice messages and was physically harassed by classmates at a school in Warsaw because of her Ukrainian background. Gladyr’s father, a citizen since 2014, had a career spanning Kiev, Cherkasy, Fenerbahçe Istanbul and Siena.
Foreign Minister’s Intervention
On Friday, Ukrainian foreign minister Andriy Syvka addressed the issue on Facebook after a conversation with Polish minister Radosław Sikorski, demanding a “fair punishment” for those engaging in xenophobic conduct against Ukrainians in Poland and stressing that such treatment would not be tolerated.
Syvka emphasized that preventing and responding to such hostility is in Ukraine’s joint interest with Poland, and that Ukraine will not allow the repatriation of the disservice towards Ukrainians.
Zelensky’s Polish Visit Highlights Ties
Syvka accompanied President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the 19 December visit to Poland, where Zelenskyy met with the marshals of the Sejm and Senate, then the Prime Minister Donald Tusk in the Cabinet Office.
Tusk discussed the European Union summit and the 27‑country agreement to provide Kyiv with a €90 billion loan, after which Tusk recalled Donald Trump’s earlier remarks about lack of leverage in negotiations with Russia, to which Zelenskyy replied that Ukraine now has stronger bargaining power.
