The West is “at war with Russia,” warned Poland’s state secretary in charge of energy infrastructure security, Piotr Naimski, while speaking to participants of the EU-US Defense & Future Forum organized by the Atlantic Council. He explained that politicians are often in denial about this, wanting a return to the period preceding the war, but they should be getting ready for Russian attempts at sabotage of energy infrastructure.
He painted a picture of an extraordinary situation. “We are discussing taking decisions with regard to sanctions, limiting imports and exports, price caps for certain products, and even rationing energy. These are decisions that do not normally have to be taken in a market economy, but we are being forced to explore them because we are in an abnormal situation caused by war.”
The Polish minister said that there could be no return to the past. He also urged Western leaders to explore further measures against Russia, such as price limits on Russian oil or coordination of LNG purchases in Europe. However, he acknowledged that this would be difficult, as the degree of dependence on Russian gas varies from state to state on the continent.
The minister said that Poland is ready for winter without the need to import Russian gas due to Poland’s efforts over the years to diversify its sources of energy.
He said that while Poland’s energy security policy is often recognized and praised in the U.S. and Europe, these efforts are often less visible and appreciated back in Poland. He commented wryly that sometimes things have to be reported in the foreign press before they are recognized as being valid and true in Poland.
