Russian authorities have removed the white and red flag from the Polish war cemetery in Katyn. Advisor to President Andrzej Duda, Minister Paweł Mucha said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had protested about this. “A Polish consul was at the site,” Mucha informed.
“There is, of course, an official position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in this regard – the protest of the Polish state; the consul was on the spot,” Mucha told Polsat News.
As he assessed, such actions target the entire West. “These are such acts of hostility, which show that the Russians are aware that the defence of Ukraine would not have been possible to such an extent and at such a time if it were not for the support of the West,” Mucha said.
Angered with Poland’s military aid to Ukraine, Russia has removed the Polish flag from the memorial complex in Katyn, Russia.
The Russians killed 25 000 Polish police & military officers at Katyn in 1940, taken prisoners-of-war during the joint invasion of Poland with ?? in 1939 pic.twitter.com/arovE4Rky7
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) June 24, 2022
On Saturday, Deputy Foreign Ministry spokesman Marcin Przydacz told Polish Radio 24 that the Polish consul in Smolensk had confirmed the fact that the Polish flag had been removed from the memorial in Katyn.
“At the same time, he intervened with the Russian authorities, with the Russian administrators of the site demanding explanations and pointing out that this type of conduct is unacceptable by the Polish side, and at the same time testifies to the lack of a civilized approach to the issue of the remembrance of the murdered people,” Przydacz said.
The #Polish flag was removed from the #Katyn memorial by the #Russian Ministry of Culture, explaining that #Poland and #Russia were no longer friends.
In 1940, more than 4,000 Polish officers were shot there. pic.twitter.com/nkBbLkliP2
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) June 26, 2022
He added that after all, Polish officers murdered by the Soviet authorities were laid to rest in Katyn, a fact acknowledged by the Russian authorities. “The presence of the Polish flag there, proper respect for this place should be a standard of civilization. If Russia does not respect such a standard, it actually shows the true face of the reign,” said the minister.
The issue of removing Polish flags from the Polish war cemetery in Katyn was reported by the independent Russian portal Meduza, quoting the words of Smolensk mayor Andrei Borisov from a social networking site posted along with a photo of two flagpoles – one with the Russian flag and the other – empty, with a ladder attached.
“I will express a general opinion. There must be no Polish flags on Russian cemeteries! And after the openly anti-Russian statements of Polish politicians – even more so. I believe that the Ministry of Culture has made the only right decision – the Polish flag should be taken down. Katyn is a Russian cemetery, it is Russian history,” wrote the mayor of Smoleńsk under the photo.
Source: https://vk.com/wall-212312636_92