Russia’s Dmitri Medvedev Warns Poland Against Support for Ukraine, Says Country May ‘Lose Its Statehood’, Usher in WWIII
During the 20 months of War in Ukraine, observers got accustomed with the fiery manifestations by Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation (and former Russian president) Dmitri Medvedev.
While President Vladimir Putin presents the cool-headed, steady face of Russia, Medvedev gives voice to the maximalist view in their society, and makes the hard reactions to the geopolitical realities known to the wider world in the most stringent manner.
Now, in an article published in Russian media, he has warned Poland that it was now considered a ‘dangerous enemy’ by Russia, and could end up ‘losing its statehood’ if it continued on its current course.
Reuters reported:
“Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, made the comments in an 8,000-word article on Russian-Polish relations, saying Moscow now had a ‘dangerous enemy’ in Poland.
‘We will treat it (Poland) precisely as a historical enemy’, Medvedev said. ‘If there is no hope for reconciliation with the enemy, Russia should have only one and a very tough attitude regarding its fate’.
“‘History has more than once delivered a merciless verdict to the presumptuous Poles: no matter how ambitious the revanchist plans may be, their collapse could lead to the death of Polish statehood in its entirety’.”
The war in Ukraine sent the already tense relations between Warsaw and Moscow to new lows.
Poland has backed Ukraine, and accuses Russia of trying to destabilize it with disinformation campaigns and espionage.
Moscow, on its part, has condemned what it sees as Warsaw’s ‘hostile stance’ towards it and Russian interests in Poland.
Medvedev, in his article for the Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, warned that Warsaw could find itself in direct confrontation with Russia and Belarus, which could result in ‘the start of World War III’.
Newsweek reported:
“The inflammatory statements are not unusual for Medvedev, who has emerged as one of the Kremlin’s most vocal critics of Ukraine’s allies. He has publicly stated on multiple occasions that Russia could attack NATO members for providing Ukraine with assistance. In December 2022, he went so far as to call Ukraine’s Western allies ‘legitimate military targets’. More recently, he said in September that Russia is prepared to engage in direct conflict with NATO member states.”
That Poland’s aid to Ukraine could cause the conflict to ‘escalate into a global war’ has been an usual line coming from Russia.
“‘Poland’s own military buildup and Polish military presence in Ukraine may trigger a direct confrontation between Warsaw and Belarus and Russia’, Medvedev wrote. ‘In this case, the allied group will give an appropriate response to prevent threats that stem from the evil ambitions of the Polish establishment’.
He continued: ‘Poland’s reckless actions, if rashly supported by its NATO allies, may have far-reaching dangerous consequences for the entire world. And then Poland will fulfill the role of ‘the hyena of Europe’ that unleashed World War III’.”
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