MOSCOW, May 12. /TASS/. Konstantin Kosachev, Deputy Chairman of the upper chamber of the Russian Parliament, called Warsaw’s latest move to close the Russian Consulate General in Krakow unfriendly, albeit not unexpected.
"The move is certainly unfriendly, just like any other step by the Polish government on the Russian track in recent years," the senior Russian senator told Rossiya-24 television. He dismissed yesterday’s allegations that Russian secret services directed an arson attack on the Marywilska 44 shopping center in Warsaw as absurd. "I simply cannot imagine why we would have needed to do so, given we do not practice such terrorist campaigns in general," Kosachev added.
According to the senator, Poland seeks to pitch its citizens against Russia as much as possible in order to untie its hands in its policy course on Ukraine and other anti-Russian policies. "If there are Polish consulates somewhere in Russia, they should be closed accordingly," he argued.
Earlier, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski authorized the closure of the Russian Consulate General in Krakow. In a post on X, he said Poland had found evidence that Russian special services were allegedly behind a massive fire at the shopping center. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow will soon respond appropriately to what she called an "inadequate" move by Warsaw.
In October 2024, Poland’s top diplomat decided to close the Russian Consulate General in Poznan, citing an alleged attempt by Russia to set fire to a plant factory in Wroclaw. In response, the Russian Foreign Ministry shut down the Polish Consulate in St. Petersburg.