German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone calls for with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko were met with concern from the Polish government, but Poland’s interior minister is now attempting to clear up what he says was a confusing diplomatic situation.
“German authorities support Poland, accept what the Polish government is doing, and publicly display solidarity with our actions associated with the situation on the border with Belarus,” Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński emphasized during his Monday interview for Polsat News television channel.
Kamiński noted that last week, German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer visited Warsaw of his own volition due to his desire to both compliment and express solidarity with Poland during the migrant crisis.
The minister explained that just prior to the meeting, the Belarusian side released information (which was later disputed by German authorities) that Angela Merkel, who spoke with Alexander Lukashenko via telephone twice last week, had supposedly proposed a “humanitarian corridor” for 2000 migrants.
“I asked minister Seehofer outright what this was about. He was very confused and I saw that he suddenly started texting. A moment later we received a response from the German chancellor who decisively denied that she had made such proposals to Lukashenko,” he said.
When asked whether Poland “accepted” Angela Merkel’s recent actions, Kamiński stated that “some diplomatic nuances should be left for later.”
He underlined that the Polish government’s goal was to bring the situation under control at the border, and “any help which contributed to that goal makes sense.”
He assured that German authorities tried to strongly support Poland and build acceptance for what Poland was doing on the border. Kamiński added that during his talks with Seehofer, it was agreed that “all future diplomatic actions from the side of Germany, if there were to be any, will be preceded by consultations on the presidential, prime ministerial and ministerial levels.”
In the context of Merkel’s talks with Lukashenko, Poland’s interior minister said that only time could tell whether more positives or negatives would come of the situation. Kamiński also declared that he would not publicly discuss the matter because he felt responsible for stabilizing the situation at the border.
He added that when it comes to the Polish-Belarusian border, Poland had immense international support, including that of the European Union, United States and the United Kingdom.
