After Poland accused the two Ukrainians of placing explosives to destroy the country's railway, Russia responded that the blamation had become a "reputation". Controversy escalated when the Kremlin mentioned Warsaw's refusal to extradite Nord Stream sabotage suspect.
Speaking on Russia-1 channel, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it would be very strange if Russia had not been blamed first for rail sabotage in Poland.
The comments came shortly after Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk reported to the National Assembly that the two suspects - both Ukrainian citizens - had planted explosives on the Warsaw - Lublin railway and fled to Belarus. Tusk said the two were cooperating with Russian intelligence.
In Moscow, the immediate reaction was pushed to a climax. Spokesperson Peskov said Poland was the place where Russophobia (the Russian industry) flourished the most in Europe and that Warsaw was trying to surpass Western Europe in blaming all the incidents on Russia.
The point to consider is not only the accusations against Moscow, but also the fact that Ukrainian citizens have once again appeared in sabotage of critical infrastructure.
Mr. Peskov affirmed that Poland is caught up in a conflict, especially when looking back at how Warsaw has handled Ukrainian-related cases in the past.
He mentioned the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosion in 2022 - one of the biggest bottlenecks in Russia-West relations. Although Moscow completely dismissed the possibility of a group of Ukrainian divers breaking the pipeline, Mr. Peskov said that the Polish court's refusal to extradite a Ukrainian suspect to Germany last month showed that Warsaw was "choosing a story that suited its interests".
According to German officials, a small group of Ukrainian divers detonated three of the four branches of the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 pipelines - the pipelines that transport Russian gas to Germany. The Kremlin called the theory unreasonable. But Warsaw has declared the extradition request from Germany to be unfounded.
Tensions heated up as Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk recently said: "The problem of Nord Stream 2 is not being attacked, but being built." According to Mr. Peskov, this statement reflects the readiness to justify sabotage if it causes damage to Russia.
In the context of the new rail sabotage project not yet overcome, the two sides' continuous dragging of Nord Stream documents shows that Russia- Poland relations are sliding deeper into the confrontation round.
