The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs responds to Zelensky’s words. “Titanic work will be necessary”
Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau assessed that Ukrainian grain policy and Zelensky’s harsh words are harmful to both Poland and Ukraine.
On Tuesday, the president of Ukraine caused outrage in Poland with his words about the grain crisis. After Poland maintained a ban on importing grain into our country, Volodymyr Zelensky talked about turning the issue into a “thriller” and preparing the stage for an “actor from Moscow.”
After a few days, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zbigniew Rau, commented on Zelensky’s words.
Rau: How can you mention Poles and Russians in the same row?
“The comparisons of Poland to Russia that have appeared in recent days in the statements of Ukrainian politicians are extremely offensive to Polish society. They lead to a deep rethinking of Polish awareness of Ukraine and Ukrainians, not only collectively, but above all individually,” wrote the minister.
He added that “in the same homes where we spontaneously hosted Ukrainian refugees, at the tables where we listened to stories about their fate, today we wonder how Poles and Russians can be mentioned in one row as harming Ukrainians.” The minister argued that Poland, like Ukraine, has been a victim of Russian imperialism for centuries, which tried to subjugate it in 1939 in Poland and in 2022 in Ukraine with “rapes, robberies, deportations and executions.”
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the grain crisis. “We will not let our relations with Poland be traded”
He added that the government’s assistance to Ukraine and Ukrainians was possible thanks to the understanding, compassion and sympathy for Ukraine of almost every Polish family. “Therefore, Ukraine’s current policy is not only harmful and painful to us, but above all offensive. It is difficult to assume that it will be forgotten quickly. That is why it is harmful to Ukraine. Together we are losing a lot from it,” he wrote.
The minister added that Poland believes in Ukraine’s victory and the government will not stand on the sidelines. “But we will not let our relations with Poland be traded in the name of private fortunes and foreign interests hostile to Poland and Ukraine. Titanic work will be necessary to rebuild the trust of Polish society in the good will of the Ukrainian authorities,” he concluded.
During his visit to the United States, the President of Ukraine was interviewed by a Polish journalist. A Polish Radio correspondent asked him if he was not afraid of losing Poland’s support. The Ukrainian leader responded evasively.
