Russia to try to tighten influence on South Europe – Poland’s Vice PM
By redeploying its military contingent from Syria to Libya, Russia will try to exert more influence on southern European countries, in particular Greece and Italy.
This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for National Defense of Poland Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, who spoke at the Interparliamentary Conference on Common Foreign, Security, and Defense Policy on Monday in Warsaw, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
As Kosiniak-Kamysz noted, even the war in Ukraine did not make such an impression on Europe as the change in the geopolitical situation (Donald Trump's election win in the USA - ed.), after which the European Union actively took up on increasing its defense capabilities. According to the Polish Deputy Prime Minister, Europe must continue to adhere to its "strategic compass" and carry out various actions, primarily related to assisting Ukraine.
"This must continue. Helping Ukraine, unequivocally standing on its side, is a fundamental matter. Every day of the war in Ukraine is a weakening of the enemy of Poland and Europe," he stressed.
The Polish minister emphasized that Russia, in accordance with its neo-imperial strategy, will never deviate from its chosen path.
"Russia may change the words of its anthem, but it has never changed the music. It is always directed against another person, their freedom," Kosiniak-Kamysz emphasized.
According to the Polish Deputy Prime Minister, despite their plans, Russia will never return to Central and Eastern Europe, to the Baltic States. He also emphasized the need to strengthen Europe's defense capabilities. In this context, the senior official emphasized the need to increase military spending, protect critical infrastructure, in particular in the Baltic Sea, for example, from ships of Putin's "shadow fleet", which carry out sabotage by cutting underwater cables. In his opinion, EU countries should change their domestic legislation, which will allow them to quickly respond to such incidents, which have recently been observed in the Baltic Sea.
The Polish politician also noted that Russia has already relocated its forces from Syria to Libya, and due to its rapprochement with Italy and Greece in this regard, "it will have more influence on these countries."
As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Russians plan to move part of their military equipment and weapons to Africa on bulkers that will arrive in the Syrian city of Tartus.
In 2024, Russia transported over 60% of its maritime oil exports by "shadow fleet" tankers, including 78% of crude oil and 37% of petroleum products.
Photo: Polsat News