Russian Ambassador Georgij Michno was summoned to the Polish Ministry of abroad Affairs on 3 September, where he heard a categorical protest against the hybrid actions attributed to Moscow and provocations at the Polish air border. After the meeting, the diplomat dismissed the charges as unfounded. For Poland the real opposition of the state is at stake, not the diplomatic gestures themselves.
Categoryial protest in the Polish Ministry of abroad Affairs
Gieorgij Michno left the office of the Ministry of abroad Affairs on Thursday after a conversation during which the Polish side handed him a formal protest. MFA spokesperson Maciej Wewiór reported that it afraid Russian hybrid operations in Poland and another countries, including Germany. Warsaw besides objected to repeated provocations close Polish air borders.
According to the Polish Ministry, Russian military aircraft operate without on-line recognition devices, creating a threat besides to civilian aviation. abroad Minister Radosław Sikorski said before the gathering that the problem of 1 ally concerns the full alliance. It's the right thing to do. The safety of Poland depends on its own readiness, but besides on NATO's credible consequence to activities conducted below the threshold of open war.
The Russian diplomat after leaving the MFA rejected the charges. He called them baseless and claimed that no evidence was presented during the interview. This is the position of the Russian side, which does not invalidate the findings submitted by the Polish and German governments. However, a liable policy requires that each country should base its assessment on the work of services, documentation and allied cooperation.
Leipzig triggered the reaction of allies
The immediate background for the ambassador's call is the August incidental at Leipzig/Halle Airport. On the night of 4th to 5th August, an explosive drone was found there. According to German findings, the unmanned man was expected to hit the Ukrainian military transport aircraft, but the fuse did not work.
The German government attributed work for attempting to attack Russia, citing a pattern of action, police investigation and intelligence. Berlin announced the closure of the Russian Consulate General in Bonn from 18 September, the termination of the agreement concerning the Russian home in Berlin, the tightening of entry checks and further action against the Russian shadow fleet.
The Polish reaction did not appear in vacuum. The effort to sabotage Leipzig and its importance for our safety has been described before. If operations aimed at infrastructure and military transport can be prepared on the territory of the NATO State, the boundary between the distant conflict and the immediate threat to citizens is becoming thinner.
The protest must be based on state strength
Calling the ambassador is simply a essential signal, but it will not halt hybrid activities itself. Poland must strengthen counterintelligence, safety of airports and critical infrastructure, drone defence and the ability to delegate work quickly. Without this, strong messages will stay a diplomatic ritual.
Nor should Russian force be allowed to break the solidarity of the countries of the region. Moscow can test NATO's cohesion with actions below the war threshold, hoping for fear, procedural disputes and public fatigue. The answer should be hard realism: evidence, protection of your own territory and consequences that your opponent can feel.
For Poles the issue has a very circumstantial dimension. It is about safety of flights, infrastructure, borders and military transport. The sovereign state cannot get utilized to provocation. A protest in the MFA is the beginning of an answer, not its end.
Source: Polsat News, Interia, Federal Ministry of abroad Affairs of Germany.
Source: Polsat News
