Andrey Sidorov, a Russian state TV pundit, recently warned that Poland “may cease to exist” amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Russian officials have regularly floated the possibility that Moscow could strike North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members in response to the aid and weapons they have provided Ukraine in the conflict. Poland, which is a member of NATO, has been a close ally to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. However, Poland’s military has pointed out that throughout the war, Russian cruise missiles fired at western Ukraine have entered its airspace.
During a recent Russian-state media program, Sidorov, deputy dean of world politics at Moscow State University, warned that the country “may cease to exist” if “they make a move” concerning Belarus, an ally to Russia.
“We should clearly let the Comrades from Poland know that we view Belarus as our own security. If they make a move, then, we beg your pardon, Poland may cease to exist,” Sidorov said, according to a translation from Russian Media Monitor, a watchdog group, on Saturday.
Newsweek has reached out to the Russian and Poland defense ministries via email for comment.
Sidorov’s remarks come after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko warned on Friday that nuclear weapons would be used against NATO if it attacked either his nation or Russia. Belarus does not have nuclear weapons of its own, but it has been hosting Russian tactical warheads on its territory since last year.
Lukashenko, a staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, made the warning while speaking at an event with students in Minsk, the Belarusian capital.
He warned that an attack on Belarus would be “World War Three” and that NATO troops crossing its border would be a “red line,” according to the country’s national news agency, Belta.
According to Article 5 of NATO, if one member state is the victim of an armed attacked, all other member states will come to their aid.
Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Radoslaw Sikorski is seen on May 27 in Brussels. Andrey Sidorov, a Russian state TV pundit, recently warned that Poland “may cease to exist” amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
The Belarusian leader said that Russia’s nuclear doctrine had been amended to state that nuclear weapons would be used in the event of an attack on either country.
“As I said at the patriotic forum [held on 17 September], an attack against Belarus will trigger World War III. Recently, Vladimir Putin has confirmed it, having amended the nuclear doctrine. An attack on Russia and Belarus will trigger a nuclear response,” Lukashenko said.
He continued: “If we use nuclear weapons, they will do the same. And against Russia too. So Russia will use the entire arsenal of weapons. This will be a world war. The West does not want this. They are not ready for it. We tell them openly: the red line is the state border. You step on it, we will respond immediately. We are preparing for this.”
This comes as Poland last month had deployed its aircraft to protect its airspace following Russia’s launch of missiles and drones at targets across Ukraine. The armed forces of Poland announced that it was responding to the threat posed by the Russian missiles as explosions were heard in Kyiv and across Ukraine.
Poland’s military issued a statement warning citizens of increased noise level in the southeast of the country “due to the start of operations of Polish and allied aircraft in our airspace.” It said at the time that the latest spate of attacks by Russia was the largest since strikes hit western Ukraine on July 8.
Poland has previously noted the growing tensions as they issued a grim prediction in April for Russia should Putin attack the country.
In an interview with German newspaper Bild, Poland’s Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski weighed in on the possibility of his country coming under attack from Russia in the future.
Poland “wouldn’t be surprised at all” if Russia attacks, but it will ultimately lose because it is much weaker than the West, Sikorski said in April.
“Russia has attacked Poland many times in the 500 years of our history,” he added. “But in this scenario, Russia will lose, because we, the West, are far more powerful than Russia. Ukraine is not fighting alone. In contrast to what often happened in the past, we won’t be fighting alone.”
