Events

11 Dec 2024

Minsk summons Polish charge d'affaires to protest attempts to recruit Belarusian diplomat

MINSK, 11 December (BelTA) – The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed the note to Charge d'Affaires of Poland in Belarus Krzysztof Ożanna, BelTA has learned.

As it was reported earlier, Polish special services tried to recruit a Belarusian diplomat in Moldova. They were willing to offer €100,000. Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anatoly Glaz emphasized that this is an outrageous incident from the point of view of both domestic and international laws. "They violate a whole range of domestic and international laws. The norms of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic and Consular Relations are directly violated. So brazen and blatant attempt to exert pressure or recruit a diplomat is beyond all bounds of the law and common decency of civilized inter-state communication. This cannot go without a response. We have already prepared a corresponding note to the Polish side. I believe that a number of other steps will follow. We are seriously considering them. All responsibility for the consequences of such actions lies with the Polish side," Anatoly Glaz said.

Polish Chargé d'Affaires to Belarus Krzysztof Ożanna was summoned to the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 11 December. The Polish diplomat was handed the note. "I will convey all what we talked about to Warsaw," Krzysztof Ożanna told journalists. The diplomat refused to comment further.

Belarus' MFA slams provocative actions by Polish special services

MINSK, 12 December (BelTA) – Charge d'Affaires of Poland in Belarus Krzysztof Ożanna was summoned to the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 11 December, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A strong protest was lodged with the Polish diplomat and a corresponding note was handed over in connection with the recent attempt by Polish special services to recruit a Belarusian diplomat in Chisinau.

The Belarusian side emphasized the inadmissibility of provocative actions by Polish special services, which grossly violate international law and cause serious damage to bilateral relations, and demanded that the Polish side take all necessary measures to prevent similar situations in the future.

The head of the Polish diplomatic mission was warned that the Belarusian side reserves the right to take any response measures it deems necessary.

Polish agents offer €100,000 in failed attempt to recruit Belarus' diplomat in Moldova

MINSK, 11 December (BelTA) – Polish special services have failed to recruit a Belarusian diplomat in Moldova despite an offer of €100,000, the Belarus 1 TV channel showed in its documentary, BelTA reports.

The recruitment attempt was made by Marcin Grabowicz, a native of the Polish city of Slupsk. After graduating from university, he was hired by the Internal Security Agency of Poland. His main areas of work were Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Then he joined the Polish Intelligence Agency. He completed combat training courses in Israel. He worked undercover in the diplomatic security unit of Poland's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He headed the regional residency in Lithuania and Latvia. From the end of 2021 to the present day he has been the official representative of the Polish Intelligence Agency in Ukraine. He holds the military rank of colonel.

Marcin Grabowicz invited the Belarusian diplomat to meet in one of Chisinau restaurants. There he said that he had a gift, but he left it in the hotel. After that the Pole invited the diplomat to his room, where he took out €100,000 in €100 bills from his bag. Then his colleague, who introduced himself as Pavel Nowak from the Polish Intelligence Agency, joined the conversation. The diplomat filmed the 'recruiters' on his mobile phone.

As it became known, the Poles reserved hotel rooms from Monday to Friday. However, they disappeared the next afternoon after the unsuccessful recruitment attempt. They did not even hand over the keys to the reception.

The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented on the situation. According to the ministry, a note was prepared against Poland; other steps are also under consideration.

“From the point of view of both domestic and international law, this is a deplorable incident. A number of domestic laws were violated. A number of international rules were broken. Provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations were directly violated. An attempt to put pressure on or recruit a diplomat was so brazen and indiscreet that it was not just beyond the bounds of law, it was an affront to the rules of normal civilized interstate communication. This cannot go without response. We have already prepared a corresponding note to the Polish side. I believe that a number of other steps will follow, we are considering them now. The entire responsibility for the consequences of such actions lies with the Polish side,” Press Secretary of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anatoly Glaz said.

Belarus' KGB comments on attempt by Polish agents to recruit Belarusian diplomat

MINSK, 11 December (BelTA) – The attempt by Polish special services to recruit a Belarusian diplomat is an outrageous incident, a crime against the state, which will be given a thorough legal assessment, Chief of the Investigative Office of Belarus’ State Security Committee (KGB) Konstantin Bychek told the Belarus 1 TV channel, BelTA has learned.

Polish special services failed to recruit a Belarusian diplomat in Moldova. They were ready to offer €100,000.

“This is another attempt by the Polish special services to cover up their unprofessionalism in view of several high-profile failures of their agents in the territory of the Republic of Belarus. The attempt to recruit an active diplomat is an outrageous incident. Therefore, it will definitely be followed by an appropriate response from the Belarusian side. And given that the actions of the Polish special services contain signs of a crime against the state, the KGB Investigative Office will give them a thorough legal assessment,” Konstantin Bychek said.

Earlier, the Belarus 1 TV channel aired the film “Belarus' KGB counterintelligence against Polish special services”. The film pointed out that a number of media organizations assumed that Belarus is going to exchange foreign citizens imprisoned for espionage in Belarus for Belarusian citizens who are in prisons abroad.

“Indeed, a large number of foreign citizens are serving sentences in prisons in the Republic of Belarus, including citizens of Poland, the Baltic states, and other Western countries for collaborating with special services of foreign states. These individuals were sentenced for espionage or intelligence activities. Their guilt was established by courts based on irrefutable evidence, including their confessions. It's true, foreign special services regularly approach us with proposals to exchange these individuals for citizens of the Republic of Belarus who are in their prisons. They offer robbers, rapists, drug addicts, swindlers for exchange. In this regard, the official position of the KGB is that we do not exchange anyone. There are no citizens of the Republic of Belarus in Poland, or in the Baltic states, or in other Western countries who collaborated with the KGB, were convicted for this, and are serving sentences there,” Konstantin Bychek said.