Today, we reiterate that the outbreak of World War II, the division of Central and Eastern Europe into spheres of influence, and the subsequent change of borders in the region resulted directly from an agreement made 84 years ago by the heads of diplomacies of the Third Reich and the Soviet Union, known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. By virtue of the Pact’s secret protocol, the two criminal regimes jointly attacked Poland and partitioned its territory.

Historical insinuations by Russian authorities and defying basic facts about the Soviet Union’s role in the unleashing of World War II are evidence of Russia’s deeply rooted revisionism and imperialism. Glorification of Stalin’s policy harms the memory of hundreds of thousands of victims of Soviet communism and supports justification of these crimes.

Russia’s ongoing aggression on Ukraine is the most brutal evidence of how dangerous is Russian authorities’ disregard of historical truth and the incapacity to hold to account the perpetrators of World War II, the greatest disaster of the 20th century.

Together with the democratic international community, Poland has been making every effort to hold to account all those responsible for the aggression on Ukraine and effectively deliver justice for the crimes against its civilian population. 

 

MFA Press Office