Poland Stops Arms Supply to Ukraine

   "Poland, one of Ukraine's staunchest allies, has announced that it will no longer supply arms to the country, amid an escalating diplomatic dispute over grain, the BBC reports.

 

     Poland's prime minister said he would rather focus on arming Poland with more modern weapons.

 

     The move comes amid rising tensions between the two countries.

 

     On Tuesday, Poland summoned Ukraine's ambassador over President Volodymyr Zelensky's comments at the UN.

 

     Zelenskiy said some nations had played solidarity with Ukraine, a statement Warsaw condemned as "unfair to Poland, which has supported Ukraine since the first days of the conflict."

 

     Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced in a televised address on Wednesday the decision to stop supplying Ukraine with arms.

 

     "We are no longer transferring weapons to Ukraine, because now we are arming Poland with more modern weapons," Morawiecki said.

 

     It is not excluded that the position may change

 

 

     Polish State Property Minister Jacek Sasin did not rule out this morning that although Poland is not currently supplying weapons to Ukraine, its position may change.

 

     "At the moment it is as the Prime Minister said, we will see in the future," said Mr. Sasina to Radio Plus, commenting on Mr. Morawiecki's statement.

 

     The tension between Warsaw and Kyiv was fueled by Poland's decision to ban grain imports from Ukraine. Warsaw took such a step to protect Polish farmers.

 

     European Commission (EC) in 2023 In May, it agreed to limit grain exports to Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia to protect farmers, who argued that the corresponding imports were depressing prices on local markets. After this decision, food products continued to transit through the territory of these countries, but were no longer sold in local markets. Although the EC indicated last Friday that it was suspending the import ban, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia immediately announced that they would oppose the suspension. Kyiv, for its part, responded by announcing that it would file a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO).

 

     Grain is a sensitive topic in Poland as the country faces elections next month. The current right-wing government has strong support from the farming regions.

 

     The ambassador of Ukraine was summoned to the Polish MFA

 

 

     Speaking during the debates at the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the President of Ukraine stated, among other things, that his country is working hard "to preserve land routes for the export of grain."

 

     "And it's worrying that some in Europe, some of our friends in Europe, are playing solidarity in political theater, creating a thriller with grain. It may seem that they are playing their role, but in fact they are helping to prepare the stage for the Moscow actor," said V. Zelensky.

 

     The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday that "Ukraine's Ambassador to Poland, Vasilis Zvarychyus, was urgently summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." "The ambassador was received by Paweł Jabłoński, Deputy State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," the statement said.

 

     "The Deputy Minister conveyed Poland's strong protest regarding President V. Zelenski's statements at the UN General Assembly that some EU countries are acting in solidarity, but indirectly supporting Russia. The deputy head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that this statement is incorrect and unfounded in relation to Poland, as our country has been supporting Ukraine since the first days of the conflict," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized.

 

     Deputy Minister P. Jabłoński stated that putting pressure on Poland in multilateral forums or sending complaints to international tribunals is not the right way to resolve disputes between the two countries.

 

     According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jabłoński also noted that these actions against Poland will not bring results, as the actions of the Polish Government to protect the interests of Polish farmers are in accordance with national, EU and international law.

 

     "The Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed his concern over recent statements by the highest representatives of the Ukrainian authorities imposing a one-sided approach to the multidimensional problem of exporting Ukrainian agricultural products to neighboring countries," the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

 

     "Vice-minister P. Jabłoński expressed the hope that both the policies carried out by the Ukrainian authorities and their public communication will reflect the true nature of Polish-Ukrainian relations, taking into account the unprecedented assistance of Poland and Poles to Ukrainians and the Ukrainian state, as well as the entire spectrum of our good cooperation," - the report said.

 

     Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine urged Poland not to be guided by emotions and to turn the dialogue on grain export in a constructive direction.

 

     This was written in the comments of the press representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Oleh Nikolenko, on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

 

     O. Nikolenka noted that the former MFA of Ukraine and was informed in detail about the meeting of the Ambassador of Ukraine in Warsaw with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland.

 

     The representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that during this meeting, the Ukrainian ambassador once again explained Kyiv's position that Poland's unilateral ban on the import of Ukrainian grain to Ukraine is unacceptable. He also noted that the Polish president incorrectly compared Ukraine to a drowning man during his visit to New York.

 

     "We urge our Polish friends to reject emotions. Ukraine offered Poland a constructive way to solve the grain problem. We hope that our proposals will allow us to direct the dialogue in a constructive direction", stated O. Nikolenka.

 

     As previously reported by Ukrinform, Ukrainian Ambassador to Poland Vasyl Zvarych was summoned to the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday due to the statement of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during the UN General Assembly, which was described as anti-Polish.

 

     During a press conference for Polish media in New York, Polish President Andrzej Duda, explaining Warsaw's decision to introduce unilateral restrictions on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products, compared Ukraine to a drowning man who can drag others to the bottom."

 

     If Poland can and wants to take care of Poland's problems, why can't the Lithuanian government do the same for our country? It is long past time to stop caring only about the affairs of corrupt Ukraine and deal with the problems of Lithuania. Security of a state is based on the happiness of the citizens in the state.