THEO VAN GOGH INTEL: MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 10542 – Russian Columnist Karaulov: Poland Poses A Threat To Its European Neighbors
Poland will become NATO’s leading defense spender in 2023 in relation to its economic size, owing around 4 percent of its GDP (many NATO states fail to make the 2% minimum, notably Germany). In March 2022, Polish President Andrzej Duda signed a new Homeland Defense law to increase the size of the Polish army to 300,000 soldiers. Russia has been watching this buildup with alarm and has previously accused Poland of seeking to annex Western Ukraine, despite Poland being at the forefront of aiding Ukraine.
Poland’s Ambassador to France, Jan Emeryk Rościszewski, recently told a local broadcaster that his country can “enter the conflict” in Ukraine. The Polish Embassy then sought to explain his remarks, arguing that they were taken out of context.
Speaking to LCI on Saturday, Ambassador Jan Emeryk Rościszewski, stated that “it is not NATO, Poland, France, or Slovakia that is increasing tensions, it is Russia that has attacked Ukraine; it is Russia that invaded [Ukraine’s] territory, it is Russia that kills people, it is Russia that kidnaps Ukrainian children.”
“If Ukraine fails to defend its independence, we will have no choice but to enter the conflict,” he added, saying: “our fundamental values, which are the cornerstone of our civilization, our culture, will be in fundamental danger, so we don’t have a choice.” Polish parliamentarians from the left accused the ambassador of being irresponsible and incompetent and of dragging Poland into a war with Russia.
In response to such criticism, the Polish Embassy in Paris released a statement denying that the ambassador announced possible Polish involvement in the conflict in Ukraine, and was merely pointing out that if Ukraine falls, Poland will be Russia’s next target.
“During a half-hour conversation, Ambassador Rościszewski argued for the need for allies to support Ukraine. He also spoke about the threat Russia poses to Europe and European values,” wrote the embassy.
“Listening carefully to the whole conversation makes it clear that there was no announcement of direct involvement by Poland in the conflict, but only a warning about the possible consequences if Ukraine is defeated,” it added.
“Seeking sensational content that is incongruous with Poland’s consistent efforts over the past year to help Ukraine win this conflict and prevent it from spilling over into Europe and Poland should be regarded as ill will.”
In Russia, the poet and columnist Igor Karaulov pounced on the incident in an article titled “Polish Militarization Poses a Fundamental Danger for Europem,” playing on the historical enmity between Russia and Poland. On the one hand, he reminded the Poles of the partition of Poland in the Eighteenth Century and hinted that this disaster for Poland could recur. On the other hand, he sought to rouse Poland’s neighbors against the dangers posed by a heavily armed Poland that may occupy their territory. He even intimated that Poland posed a threat to Germany and that the Germans should take the Polish demand for reparations as a harbinger of Polish ambitions at Germany’s expense.
Karaulov’s column follows below:
“A statement by one Jan Emeryk Rościszewski, who claims to be Poland’s Ambassador to France [—] saying that in the case of Ukraine’s military defeat, Poland will have no other choice but to enter into the armed conflict [—] was promptly rebutted by some other Poles, albeit not on the highest level.
“From this, one can conclude that Mr. Jan’s opinion, at least for the time being, is not the official stance of the Polish state. However, one cannot turn a blind eye to this statement, at the very least because it was obviously made not without a reason, and reflects the perceptions and aspirations of a certain segment of Polish society, what is more, a significant and far from marginal segment.”
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