Polish PM Morawiecki calls cessation of gas supplies 'direct attack' by Russia on Poland

During an address to the parliament on Wednesday, Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki asserted that Russia's cutoff of gas supplies is a "direct attack" on his nation. On Wednesday, Russia cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria over failure to pay in rubles, intensifying an economic conflict with Europe in reaction to Western sanctions imposed in response to Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

"This time, Russia has moved the borders of imperialism, gas imperialism to the next step. This is a direct attack on Poland, which yesterday showed what a real blow to Russian oligarchs is," Morawiecki stated.

He recalled that Poland had just issued the first list of Russian companies and oligarchs targeted for sanctions the day before. The Kremlin retaliated by threatening to cut off the gas supply, which was carried out on Wednesday. At the same time, Morawiecki stated that Poland has been working for many years to reduce its dependence on Russia for energy. In particular, an LNG terminal has been constructed in Swinoujscie, the Baltic gas pipeline is approaching completion, and gas from Norway will be transferred to Poland starting in October.

In addition, Poland has been aggressively building gas interconnectors with neighbouring countries in recent years, some of which have already been completed, and others that are nearing completion. Morawiecki also stated that the country has sufficient gas reserves to deal with the issue of gas supply disruptions from the east.

Russia halts gas supply to Poland

On April 27, Russia ceased all gas deliveries to Poland. Due to its refusal to pay for gas in rubles, Russia's monopoly Gazprom has interrupted gas deliveries to Bulgaria's Bulgargaz and Poland's PGNiG. The EU's governing bodies have already expressed their displeasure with this move.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday that Russia's decision to cut off gas supplies to some EU countries was "another attempt by Russia to use gas as a tool of blackmail." She added that the EU will coordinate its response to the Russian Federation's actions.

Furthermore, the Polish government announced sanctions on 15 Russian billionaires, 35 Russian and Belarusian businesses, and their Polish subsidiaries on Tuesday, April 26. Gazprom, Novatek, Kaspersky Lab, as well as oligarchs Oleg Deripaska, Mikhail Friedman, and Viktor Vekselberg, are among them.

(With agency inputs)