Diplomatic spat ignites as Poland accuses Russia of sabotage

Poland has summoned the Russian ambassador and shuttered the country’s consulate in Krakow as it accuses Moscow of “sabotage”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Warsaw announced the action on Monday as it reported that an investigation had found that Russian intelligence services had orchestrated a massive fire at a shopping centre in capital Warsaw in May 2024.

“Due to evidence that the Russian special services committed a reprehensible act of sabotage against the shopping centre on Marywilska Street, I have decided to withdraw my consent to the operation of the Consulate of the Russian Federation in Krakow,” Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski wrote on X on Monday.

The announcement followed a revelation by Prime Minister Donald Tusk the previous day that a yearlong investigation had revealed Moscow was behind the blaze, which gutted the shopping centre’s 1,400 retail units.

“We already know for sure that the large fire on Marywilska was the result of arson ordered by Russian services. The actions were coordinated by a person staying in Russia. Some of the perpetrators are already in custody, the rest have been identified and are being sought,” Tusk said on X on Sunday.

Deliberately destroying relations

Poland has repeatedly said its role as a hub for aid being sent to Ukraine has made it a target of Russian sabotage, cyberattacks and misinformation.

Several other Western nations have made similar accusations since the Kremlin launched an invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Moscow has persistently denied such allegations, calling them evidence of anti-Russian sentiment. It was quick to insist that it had no involvement in the arson attack and slammed the claim.

“Warsaw continues to deliberately destroy relations, acting against the interests of its citizens,” Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, according to the state news agency RIA.

She added that Russia would soon deliver an “adequate response”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the allegation of Russian involvement in the fire was totally groundless, and accused Warsaw of Russophobia.

The Polish announcement marks a new low in already tense relations between Warsaw and Moscow.

In October, Poland shuttered the Russian consulate in Poznan due to suspicion of sabotage efforts. Moscow closed the Polish consulate in St Petersburg in response.

Poland’s neighbours, also strong supporters of Ukraine, have made similar accusations of clandestine attacks orchestrated by Russian intelligence services.

Lithuanian prosecutors in March accused Russia of orchestrating an arson attack on an IKEA store in Vilnius, where a fire broke out three days before the blaze in Poland.

Western governments and intelligence agencies in Europe have pointed to Moscow as the source of a series of fires and other acts of sabotage aimed at destabilising allies of Ukraine.