Łukasz Jasina said on Twitter that Russian Ambassador Sergey Andreev was summoned to the Polish foreign ministry on Friday and "handed a note of protest regarding the statement by the Russian Federation’s former commissioner for children’s rights Pavel Astakhov calling for the murder of the Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Moscow."
Jasina's tweet added: "The Polish side protested firmly against this situation and urged that criminal proceedings be instituted immediately and the perpetrator be punished without delay."
The announcement came after Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said this week that threats made against Poland’s ambassador in Russian state media demonstrated “the real face of Russia” and “should be taken seriously.”
But he vowed that Poland “won’t be intimidated.”
Russia’s Astakhov, a former children’s ombudsman, said on Russian television on Sunday that he "waited to see if the Polish ambassador would be found floating in the Moskva river or not” after the Russian ambassador to Warsaw was splashed with red paint by anti-war protesters in May last year, according to media reports.
Astakhov's words came after Poland on Saturday took over a Russian embassy school building in Warsaw following a court ruling, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Poland’s foreign ministry on May 1 condemned Astakhov’s remarks and called on Russia “to ensure the safety of all diplomats.”
On May 9, 2022, the Russian ambassador to Warsaw, Sergiy Andreev, was splashed with red paint by an anti-war activist as he attempted to mark Russia’s Victory Day by laying wreaths at the graves of Soviet soldiers at a cemetery in Warsaw.
Polish government spokesman told reporters at the time: “The Polish authorities had notified the Russian embassy of the risks involved when an official from a country that invades other states, that conducts a policy of genocide in Ukraine, publicly lays flowers, which … may be met with protests from the public.”
Already hostile relations between Russia and Poland have worsened since the start of the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, with Warsaw positioning itself as one of Kyiv's staunchest allies, the Reuters news agency reported.
Friday is day 436 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: IAR, PAP, Reuters