Russia’s relations with Poland are at their worst since the Second World War, the Russian ambassador to Poland, Sergey Andreyev, said in an interview with Russian portal RBK.
The ambassador’s discussion focused on Polish-Russian relations in context of the conflict over the historic truth of the Second World War.
Since the conflict started, Russia has accused Poland of co-responsibility for the outbreak of the war, anti-Semitism, and lack of appreciation for the Red Army which “liberated” Poland from Germany Nazi occupation.
The Russian side also claims that it was not the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact, where Germany and the Soviet Union jointly decided to invade Poland and split its territory, but instead it was the Munich Agreement which directly led to the global conflict.
Andreyev accused Russia’s opponents of believing that “because relations with Russia are bad today, then Russia’s role in history should also be painted in a negative light only.” He added that the goal of such actions is to weaken Russia’s position on the international arena.
The ambassador argued that the USSR’s role in defeating fascism pertains to the modern era as well, with the entire post-war system of international relations and law shaped by the result of the Second World War.
He believed that the USSR had lawfully taken the place of one of the victors and modern Russia inherited the position as a continuation of that state.
Andreyev emphasized that the Soviet Union had won the Second World War and only those who were by its side. Anyone who now sees themselves as the USSR’s opponent in that war will be considered a loser in history and the historic debate, he added.
The diplomat also stated that “Polish-Russian relations are worse today than at any time since the end of the Second World War.”
Poland responds
After the invasion of Poland by Soviet forces in 1939, an estimated one million Polish citizens were deported to gulags in the Soviet Union, with many of them dying from nourishment and exhaustion.
Polish diplomats in Moscow pointed out that current relations are much better than they were when the war ended, as “there are no Soviet troops on Polish territory”.
They stressed that the reason for the current worsening of relations is due to Russia modeling itself after Soviet policies.
The diplomats hoped that “totalitarian past” will not continue to negatively affect relations between the Polish and Russian nations.
Title image: The Russian side also claims that it was not the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact (1939 – pictured) but the Munich Agreement (1938) which directly led to the war.
