MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned against any attempts to appropriate the Russian consulate building in Gdansk.

"We would strongly advise the hotheads in Poland, apparently on the verge of blowing their top, to carefully consider all the potential consequences if anyone attempts to pull something like this, to lay hands on Russian property," she said at a briefing. "There have been plenty of examples of how Russia responds, and how painful it can be for those who commit unlawful acts against our country," she said at a briefing.

The diplomat pointed out that the building of the consulate, which was shut down by decision of the Polish authorities, belongs to Russia. "This property was transferred to the USSR for indefinite and free use in the postwar period, in exchange for a historic building that had belonged to the Russian Empire’s consulate since the 18th century, and later to the USSR, which was destroyed during combat operations in World War II," Zakharova said

Earlier, the Polsat TV channel reported, citing the Gdansk city hall’s press service, that Polish officials attempted to enter the former Russian consulate building and seize property, but were prevented from entering.

On November 19, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said Poland would close the last Russian consulate general in Gdansk on December 23. As a response, Moscow decided to shut down Poland’s consulate general in Irkutsk from December 30. In October 2024 and May 2025, Poland closed Russia’s consulates general in Poznan and Krakow. In response, the Polish consulates in St. Petersburg and Kaliningrad were closed.