Poland may end up 'joining' Ukraine war: Polish Ambassador to France
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The Polish diplomat says "either Ukraine will successfully defend its independence, or we will be forced, in any case, to join this conflict."
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Polish Ambassador to France, Jan Emeryk Rosciszewski (AFP)
The Polish Ambassador to France, Jan Emeryk Rosciszewski, pointed out on Saturday that Poland may end up "joining" the war in Ukraine, should Kiev fail to protect its "independence".
In an interview for the broadcaster LCI, Rosciszewski blamed Russia for the ongoing war, claiming that it was "not NATO, not Poland, not France and not Slovakia" that was fueling international tensions, but Russia.
The Polish diplomat considered that the situation now is "either Ukraine will successfully defend its independence, or we will be forced, in any case, to join this conflict."
"Otherwise, our principal values, which are the basis of our civilization and our culture, will be in fundamental danger, so we will have no choice," he indicated.
Rosciszewski's shocking statement prompted the Polish mission in France to elaborate further on the remarks.
On Sunday, the Embassy released a message saying the Ambassador's words were not actually "an announcement of Poland’s direct involvement in the conflict, but only a warning against the consequences of Ukraine's defeat."
"Listening carefully to the entire conversation allows us to understand that there was no announcement of Poland’s direct involvement in the conflict, but only a warning against the consequences of Ukraine's defeat – the possibility of Russia attacking or dragging into the war more Central European countries – the Baltic states and Poland,” the statement read.
However, top Russian senator Alexey Pushkov questioned Warsaw's presumed resolve to fight Moscow on its own.
"A very presumptuous statement by the Polish ambassador in Paris. For the first time, an official representative of Poland said what its leaders have long had on their minds. However, all the ‘courage’ of the Poles is based on the support of the United States. Is Warsaw sure that Washington is ready to fight?" Pushkov wrote on Telegram.
It is noteworthy that Poland has been one of the most vocal backers of Kiev in the war, providing it with a variety of military hardware, including tanks and artillery pieces.
Russia revealed that a considerable number of Polish mercenaries have been directly participating in the war against Russia.
Warsaw has also declared a substantial military buildup of its own, aiming to significantly increase the size of its armed forces and acquire vast amounts of sophisticated military hardware from abroad.
A few days ago, Polish President Andrzej Duda confirmed that his country will hand over the first four MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine in the coming days.
On March 9, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak announced the decision to supply Kiev with a new batch of 10 Leopard 2 tanks.
On February 24, Blaszczak said that Poland was the first European country to deliver the first four Polish Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine.
On February 12, Duda considered that Russia can defeat Ukraine if the West and its allies do not provide Kiev with urgent military assistance.
Read more: Poland to install electric barrier along the border with Russia
