Politics Poland's Foreign Minister rejects criticism from Kiev
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski has rejected criticism from Ukraine regarding the lack of fighter jet deliveries from his country. "We have our own defense needs," the liberal-conservative politician told the Polsat News channel. Ukraine must understand that Poland, as a "frontline state", must also deter Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had previously complained that Poland had once again found a reason not to hand over additional MiG-29 fighter jets to his country.
02.11.2024, 16:00
SDA
According to Sikorski, the cabinet in Warsaw has submitted a proposal for a defense loan in connection with military aid for Ukraine. Sikorski argued that this could have been done from the outset: Ukraine could buy armaments factories in Poland on credit and repay the money during reconstruction. Judging by media reports, however, the proposal is unlikely to meet with much approval in Kiev. Selensky also recently criticized Poland for not wanting to shoot down Russian missiles over Ukraine. Warsaw points out that such a step would require a joint NATO decision.
Relations between Warsaw and Kiev are not free of strains. Sikorski referred to the massacre in Volhynia, in which Ukrainians murdered 50,000 to 100,000 Poles during the Second World War in 1943, depending on the source. Ukraine had allowed the exhumation and burial of soldiers of the German Wehrmacht. The Foreign Minister warned that the Polish dead and murdered should not be treated less favorably.
