Russian ambassador ignores Poland's summons request

Poland says the Russian ambassador in Warsaw failed to show up despite being summoned to clarify the incident of Moscow's missile "violating" Polish airspace.

"The ambassador did not appear at the Foreign Ministry today to explain the incident involving the Russian cruise missile," Pawel Wronski, a spokesman for the Polish Foreign Ministry, said on March 25, referring to Sergey Andreyev.

The Polish military said on March 24 that a Russian cruise missile had “violated” Polish airspace for 39 seconds while heading towards towns in western Ukraine. The missile flew at a speed of nearly 800 km/h at an altitude of about 400 meters and penetrated two kilometers into Polish territory before returning to the border.

Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said the country had activated all its air defense systems in response. He stressed that the missile would be shot down if there were any signs that it was headed towards Polish territory.

Russian Ambassador to Poland Sergey Andreyev in a photo published in April 2022. Photo: TASS — Russian Ambassador to Poland Sergey Andreyev in a photo published in April 2022. Photo: *TASS*

“We wonder whether the ambassador is following the instructions of the Foreign Ministry in Moscow and whether he can properly represent Russian interests in Warsaw,” Mr. Wronski said.

The spokesman said Poland would send a diplomatic note asking Russia to explain the "violation" of Warsaw's airspace in another way, but did not elaborate.

Russian media quoted Ambassador Andreyev as saying he received a summons request on the morning of March 25, but decided to ignore it.

"When I asked about the topic of discussion, I was told that it was related to yesterday's incident. I asked again whether the Polish side was going to provide us with any evidence of their accusations," Mr Andreyev said. "I did not receive a clear answer."

Russian officials said they had yet to receive evidence of a similar allegation made by Poland in late December, in which Warsaw said a Russian cruise missile had flown into its airspace for several minutes before returning to Kiev territory.

"I see no reason to discuss this topic without evidence, so I refuse to go to the Polish Foreign Ministry headquarters," Andreyev said.

Poland has been a strong supporter of Ukraine since the conflict between the country and Russia broke out in late February 2022. Warsaw has delivered a lot of military equipment to Kiev and has regularly called on Western countries to increase military aid to Ukraine. However, relations between the two countries have recently been strained over the issue of cheap grain.

Poland is also one of the neighboring countries most directly affected by the conflict in Ukraine. In November 2022, two Poles were killed after a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile fell on the village of Przewodow near the border between the two countries.

The missile was initially believed to have been launched by Russia, raising concerns about the possibility of NATO, of which Poland is a member, being drawn into the conflict in Ukraine.