Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s statements blaming the Baltic states and Poland for Russia’s war against Ukraine have provoked sharp reactions in Warsaw and across the Baltics.
In an interview with the Hungarian YouTube channel “Partizán,” Merkel claimed that she and French President Emmanuel Macron had wanted to hold direct talks with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in 2021, but that Poland and the Baltic states’ refusal to support this idea had led to a breakdown in diplomatic relations between Russia and the European Union (EU). According to Merkel, this, in turn, contributed to Russia’s renewed invasion of Ukraine.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski on Monday said that Merkel’s assertion — that Warsaw had objected to such talks — was “as true as her claim in her memoirs that no one in Central Europe protested against the Nord Stream gas pipeline.”
“Take a look at how the German government reacted in 2007 when I said we didn’t like deals being made behind our backs. The chancellor has probably forgotten how her own government responded to our protests,” Sikorski reminded.
Former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki was even more direct, writing on the platform X (formerly Twitter) that:
“With her reckless interview, Angela Merkel has proven herself to be one of the most harmful German politicians
for Europe in the past century.”
Poland’s Minister for Regional Policy and former Ambassador to Russia Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz said that Merkel’s remarks benefit Moscow.
“To blame others for starting a war simply because someone didn’t sit down with Russia in time and didn’t bow deeply enough before Moscow is absurd,” she said.
Similar views were expressed by Latvian, Lithuanian, and Estonian politicians.
Former Latvian Prime Minister and current senior adviser on geopolitical affairs at the international strategic communications agency Kreab, Krišjānis Kariņš, noted that in 2021 many countries, including Germany, still did not understand Russia, but he expressed astonishment that Merkel could still hold such views after everything that has happened in Ukraine.
“Putin acts the way he acts, and the only choice for the West is either to submit or to resist.
It is surprising that the former German chancellor would say such a thing today, when it seems clear to everyone what Russia really is. I am pleased that the new German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, does not share Merkel’s views,” Kariņš said.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna stressed on X that Russia alone bears responsibility for its aggression.
“To say that the Baltic states or Poland are to blame for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is not only shameless but simply wrong. (…) The true cause lies in Putin’s refusal to accept the collapse of the Soviet Union — and in the West’s past appeasement, ignoring clear warning signs,” Tsahkna emphasized.
Meanwhile, former Polish ambassador to the United States Marek Magierowski criticized the media for exaggerating Merkel’s statements.
“The former chancellor merely said that the Baltic states and Poland did not agree to a new EU negotiation format with Russia. There is quite a long way from that statement to the claim that ‘Poland is co-responsible for Putin’s war,’” Magierowski pointed out.
Read also: Merkel’s words shock the Baltics – Kariņš responds to the former Chancellor