Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader and ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he was ready to attack Poland and that the European country “better take up its weapons.”
In a video shared on Twitter by BBC journalist Francis Scar on Wednesday, Kadyrov said “the issue with Ukraine is closed” and that he was “interested in Poland”, according to a translation of his comments.
“After Ukraine, if we are given the command, in six seconds we will show you what we are capable of,” Kadyrov said.
Poland is one of the countries supplying weapons to Ukraine to help defend itself against the Russian invasion, which has been going on since late February. Kadyrov’s statement underscored fears expressed by some Polish leaders that Russia could potentially attack Poland in the future.
While Putin has not given any definite indication of whether he can look to Poland, Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Pavel Jablonski said in an interview with Al Jazeera in late March that it was “absolute certainty” that Putin would like to attack Poland.
“At the same time, we are absolutely certain of that [Putin] he will not do it now because he is too busy with what is happening in Ukraine, “Jablonski added.
Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechen leader and ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Poland was “better off taking back its weapons.” Above, Kadyrov attended a reception on the occasion of National Unity Day on November 4, 2018 in Moscow. Mikhail Svetlov / Getty Images
The video of the Chechen leader, which garnered nearly 25,000 views as of Wednesday night, also shows Kadyrov urging Poland to “formally apologize for what you did to our ambassador.”
Kadyrov ostensibly mentions an incident earlier this month when Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Sergei Andreev, was hit with red paint at a Victory Day event in Poland. The move was a protest against Russia’s war in Ukraine. Andreev and his delegation were forced to leave the area after the incident.
“We will not just ignore it,” Kadyrov said in the video. – Keep that in mind.
It was not immediately clear when and where the video was shot.
Kadyrov is not the only ally of Putin who has stepped up rhetoric against Poland in recent weeks.
Oleg Morozov, a member of the Russian parliament and a senior member of Putin’s political party, United Russia, suggested earlier this month that Poland should be “first in line for denazification after Ukraine”, according to an English translation by the Telegram Post.
Morozov did not specify why he believes Poland needs “denazification”.
Newsweek asked the foreign ministries of Russia and Poland for comment.
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