The invasion of Russian drones into the Polish airspace is an attempt for the Kremlin to check the reaction of NATO by gradually escalating actions, but without causing war – said the head of Polish diplomacy Radosław Sikorski in an interview for the “Guardian” daily published on Sunday.
According to the deputy prime minister and foreign minister, drones that were used by the Russians could be armed, but those that reached Poland from Tuesday to Wednesday night were not equipped with explosives.
– He suggests that Russia tried to test us without causing war – said Sikorski in an interview with the British newspaper.
“In the conversation (Sikorski) he rejected the suggestion that Polish air defense was not prepared for the invasion, taking into account the fact that some drones arrived deep into Poland, and according to the report only three or four out of about 19” were shot down – noted “Guardian”. The minister announced that the Russian “drones did not reach their destination, there were minor material damage, nobody suffered.” – If it happened in Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian definition, it could be considered a 100 % success – he emphasized.
In the opinion of the head of Polish diplomacy, Poland's reaction would be “much sharper” if the attack caused injuries or fatalities. When asked how such a reaction could look like in the future hypothetical scenario, Sikorski refused to answer.
– Putin's only the strongest means of pressure act on such an aggressor and a liar as the leader of Russia Vladimir) – he emphasized.
The interlocutor of “Guardian” rejected the suggestion of US President Donald Trump that the attack of Russian drones “could be a mistake”, claiming that a significant number of drones appeared in the Polish aircraft. – You can believe that one or two devoured the course, but 19 mistakes in one night, in seven hours, sorry, but I don't believe it – said Sikorski.
The minister announced that Polish anti -done teams will be trained by Ukrainian operators to help defend against future attacks. In his opinion, “Ukrainians have better equipment to fight Russian drones and have a much deeper and more current experience in resisting the Russian army.”
– This is something that society and governments in the West must urgently include in their thinking (…) that Ukrainians will train us, how to oppose Russia, not the other way around – he noted. He added that training Poles in practical control of drones is to take place in one of the NATO training centers in Poland.
At the weekend, Sikorski spoke at the annual conference of the Yalta European strategy (YES) in Kiev, at which Ukrainian elites and foreign politicians discussed the prospects of Ukraine after more than three years of the defense war with Russia.
During the conference, the Polish minister expressed the hope that Trump would receive a Nobel Peace Prize if he managed to achieve “just peace”, which he described as “Ukraine within the limits of defense and Ukraine integrating with the West.” He suggested that the US President has not yet shown major signs of pressure on Putin to accept such a solution. – (Trump) has its own style, we respect it, but we will judge it after the results – emphasized Sikorski.
“Guardian” reminded that at the beginning of September in Paris, 26 countries committed to participate in the post -war security mission in Ukraine, some of them engaging troops on the spot. The idea was then that Ukraine, although not a member of NATO in the near future, could receive guarantees modeled on Article 5 of the Washington Treaty after the conclusion of a future peace agreement. This would prevent Russia's re -attack.
During the conference in Kiev, the head of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned against such rhetoric when it comes to future guarantees.
– Security guarantees are to scare away a potential opponent (…) (ideas – PAP appears) that if there is a room, then the next time Russia tries something against Ukraine, we can go to war with her. I think this is unlikely. Because if you want to go to war with Russia, you can do it today, but I can't see those willing. And in international relations there is nothing more dangerous than granting guarantees that are not credible, “said Sikorski.
From London Marta Zabłocka (PAP)
MZB/ AP/ MALK/
