Kierwiński: This situation cannot happen again. The saboteur entered Poland without the knowledge of the services

The head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, Marcin Kierwiński, said that Poland expects Ukraine not to repeat a situation in which the Polish services are not informed about a convicted person wanted in Ukraine. – This case was the subject of a conversation between Prime Minister Donald Tusk and the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky – he added.

Acts of sabotage took place on the Warsaw-Dorohusk route a week ago. In the town of Mika (Masovian Voivodeship, Garwoliński County), an explosion of an explosive device destroyed a railway track. A day later, in another place, near the Gołąb railway station (Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship), a train with 475 passengers had to suddenly brake due to a damaged overhead contact line. The spokesman for the National Prosecutor's Office, Prosecutor Przemysław Nowak, announced on Wednesday that charges had been brought against two Ukrainian citizens in this case; they are accused of carrying out acts of sabotage on Russia's behalf.

Convicted in absentia, but not wanted

One of the suspects on the railway line in Poland is Ukrainian Yevheniy Ivanov, recruited in 2024 by Russian military intelligence (GRU), and then convicted in absentia by a court in Lviv for preparing an attack in a factory producing drones.

The head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration was asked at Saturday's press conference about the cooperation between Polish and Ukrainian services, since a person previously convicted in Ukraine entered Polish territory.

Kierwiński emphasized that this was one person who was not recorded in the registers of the Polish Border Guard “as a person convicted in Ukraine or a wanted person.”

Intervention at the highest level

– This case was the subject of a conversation between Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President (of Ukraine, Volodymyr) Zelensky, because we will also expect from the Ukrainian side that such a situation will never happen again – said Kierwiński.

He emphasized that Interpol red notices should be issued for people convicted in Ukraine for sabotage and sabotage – if they are not in Ukrainian prisons.

– When it comes to ensuring that such cases of not marking such people do not occur again, the Prime Minister has already talked to President Zelensky, (then) I think that you will see the effects very quickly, because you will naturally not recognize them, because it is an exchange of information between services. Such a situation should not occur, we expect from our partners, from our partner services, that if such situations occur, these people will be marked appropriately so that they cannot enter the territory of the European Union – emphasized the head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration.

The arrests continue, the prosecutor's office is looking for evidence

He also added that arrests regarding acts of sabotage in Poland are still ongoing. – The arrests in this case are ongoing, it's not like this case has ended. Various people who were or may have been in contact with the saboteurs at various stages are being detained and interrogated as part of the operational activities, emphasized Kierwiński.

He explained that not every arrest is intended to put someone in jail. – Sometimes detention is part of operational work, finding evidence or further elements that are needed to effectively unmask all those who actively cooperated with these attackers – said Kierwiński.

He recalled that the prosecutor's office decided to charge one person for matters unrelated to this issue. – However, this does not change the fact that the interrogations of each of these people could and certainly led investigators to further threads in this case – said the head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration.

Explosives and the Belarusian trail

Kierwiński was also asked about the reports of “Gazeta Wyborcza”, which – based on information from its informant – wrote that on the tracks near Garwolin, saboteurs placed three charges every few dozen centimeters near the screws fastening the rails. “Of the three charges, two exploded according to the saboteurs' plan, the third failed – it also exploded, but did not cause as much destruction as they expected,” the newspaper wrote.

Kierwiński replied that he would not inform about these issues, “that's what the prosecutor's office is for now.” – I can only repeat what the Prime Minister (Donald Tusk) said during his speech, that not all of the explosive material that was supposed to be installed there exploded – emphasized the head of the Ministry of Interior and Administration.

He was also asked about the assurances of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs that Minsk joined the search for people suspected of carrying out sabotage in Poland. The spokesman for the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that if the whereabouts of these people in Belarus are determined, they will be detained and “in accordance with the applicable procedure and taking into account all circumstances related to the case, the request to hand them over to the Polish side will be considered.”

Kierwiński replied that he would like such assurances to be fulfilled. – I tend to judge facts, not declarations, for now they are declarations, we will see how they will be implemented. There is no doubt that these two saboteurs are either in Belarus or have passed through Belarus. If there is a willingness on the part of the Belarusian services to provide us with additional information in this regard, it will certainly be very valuable, said the minister.

Less pressure at the border

He also noted that Poland is pleased to observe “the situation of a radical reduction in migration pressure and attempts to cross the border (Belarus with Poland).” – But we do not yet recognize it as a permanent process at this stage and therefore we will use all legal means, legal institutions, but also organizational forms that allowed us to basically stop this illegal migration, stop this illegal route – said Kierwiński.

Karolina Gałecka, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Interior and Administration, announced on Saturday that between November 14 and 20 this year. over 20 attempts to illegally cross the border with Belarus were recorded. (PAP)

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