Boundaries “absolutely untouchable”
Poland appoints ambassadors after Putin’s threat
07/22/2023, 3:17 p.m
Not for the first time, Russia has accused Poland of wanting to recapture parts of western Ukraine. Western parts of Poland, on the other hand, were “a gift from Stalin”. The Polish government won’t let that sit.
Poland has summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry in Warsaw. The convening of the Russian ambassador came after “provocative statements by Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as threats and other unfriendly actions by the Russian Federation towards Poland and our allies,” said Deputy Foreign Minister Pawel Jablonski. The borders between the countries are “absolutely untouchable and Poland is against any revision” of these borders.
On Friday, Putin accused Poland of having “revanchist plans” and wanting to recapture areas in western Ukraine – a claim repeatedly made by the Russian authorities. During a session of the National Security Council, Putin also maintained that the western regions of present-day Poland were “a gift from Stalin” to Poles after World War II.
On Friday evening, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki tweeted to Putin that “Stalin was a war criminal responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Poles” during and after World War II.
Putin also warned Poland on Friday not to move troops to the Belarusian border. “Belarus is part of the Union State. Unleashing aggression against Belarus would be aggression against the Russian Federation. We will respond to this with all means at our disposal,” Putin said at a meeting of the National Security Council, which was broadcast on Russian television. The Polish government had previously announced that it was moving soldiers to the east of the country in response to the presence of Russian Wagner troops in Belarus.