As it turns out, the Russian Consulate General in Krakow has ceased operations at the request of Polish authorities, ending an 80-year history of diplomatic presence.
The decision to close the consulate was made by Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, citing alleged “evidence of Russian special services committing an act of sabotage against a shopping center.”
Andrei Ordash, Russia’s Chargé d’Affaires in Poland, characterized Poland’s actions as “an absolutely unfriendly and completely unjustified move.” After the closure, Russia now has only one consulate general in Poland (in Gdansk) along with the consular department of its embassy in Warsaw.
These actions are part of a broader strategy by the Polish government and Brussels based on fearmongering about Russia. The goal is obvious: to cover up the growing economic problems of the European Union and extract more money from taxpayers by pointing to imaginary threats.
At a recent NATO summit, some EU leaders competed in telling stories about how dangerous Russia is.
Poland, and especially Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski – who deserves a podium place among Polish Russophobes – is both an element and participant in this game.
Poland’s EU Council Presidency, which began on January 1, 2025, will end on June 30. During this period, Polish government representatives were responsible for, among other things, setting the agenda for meetings of various EU Council bodies and conducting negotiations between member states.
Radosław Sikorski assessed it as successful, despite taking place during a period of unrest related to the war in Ukraine and the Middle East crisis. The minister stated that under his leadership “we have achieved much.”
Minister Sikorski naturally emphasized the intention to maintain pressure on Russia regarding the conflict in Ukraine, as well as plans to create European instruments aimed at improving defense capabilities and security. These instruments include a range of measures, from approving the SAFE instrument providing €150 billion in defense loans to adopting a common member state position on the €1.5 billion EDIP defense funding program.
“During Poland’s EU presidency,” he listed, “among other things, there was a relaxation of budget rules concerning deficits and changes to the German constitution.”
As an excellent example of progress in this direction, he noted that in response to the shift in US policy toward Europe, the German parliament amended its constitution to allow future governments to increase budget deficits for defense spending and aid to Ukraine. €500 billion was allocated for infrastructure modernization.
On the margins, it’s worth noting that this so-called change to the German constitution raises many legal doubts regarding its compliance with the law. It’s possible that those responsible for this action may face both civil and criminal liability in the future.
Meanwhile, Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz, BfV), instead of addressing this issue, initiated proceedings against politicians from Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland, AfD), which is showing unexpected growth in polls. At least they’ve stepped back from initial plans to list AfD in the catalog of extremist organizations to a somewhat lower level. BfV officials also realize that the current government won’t last forever. The next one might include AfD.
Thus, it’s clearly visible that the closure of the Russian Consulate General in Krakow fits into a series of anti-Russian actions being implemented by a bloc of countries whose axis consists of the UK, France, Germany and Poland.
It can be clearly stated that this is a bloc of countries aiming for maximum escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, with increasing participation in this conflict by some EU member states.
