The Polish foreign minister Radosław Sikorski has said “Poland condemns terrorism in any form,” in reaction to an apparent mass shooting at a Russian concert hall. Russian media reported on Friday that a hall had been attacked in the city of Krasnogorsk, northwest of the capital Moscow.
At least 60 people have reportedly been killed and 100 injured in the attack. Social media carried video footage of a number of armed men entering the hall and opening fire on people.
State-owned news agency Ria Novosti said an exchange of automatic gunfire had been heard at the scene and that a fire had broken out at the premises. There were also reports of a further explosion. Local media reported on Friday evening that special forces had started storming the building.
Sikorski told private news channel TVN24: “Of course, Poland condemns terrorism in any form.”
The minister was asked about the attack’s consequences in light of a declaration by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov that Moscow’s “special military operation” in Ukraine had become a war and that the “collective West” had become “a participant in it on Ukraine's side.”
“I don’t think it’s worth speculating because we still have too little data,” Sikorski replied. “Concerning Mr Peskov’s announcement that it is a war — he’s realized that after two years — it only arouses in me the following reflection: in that case, will the Russian authorities release people from prison who have already said it is a war, not a military operation?”
Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, later took to the X platform to say he was being kept apprised of the situation.
State-owned news agency Ria Novosti said an exchange of automatic gunfire had been heard at the scene and that a fire had broken out at the premises. There were also reports of a further explosion. Local media reported on Friday evening that special forces had started storming the building.
Sikorski told private news channel TVN24: “Of course, Poland condemns terrorism in any form.”
The minister was asked about the attack’s consequences in light of a declaration by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov that Moscow’s “special military operation” in Ukraine had become a war and that the “collective West” had become “a participant in it on Ukraine's side.”
“I don’t think it’s worth speculating because we still have too little data,” Sikorski replied. “Concerning Mr Peskov’s announcement that it is a war — he’s realized that after two years — it only arouses in me the following reflection: in that case, will the Russian authorities release people from prison who have already said it is a war, not a military operation?”
To date, Moscow has always referred to the war in Ukraine as a “special military operation.”What I’d like to know is whether those brave Russians who called Putin’s invasion of Ukraine a war before the Kremlin spokesman Peskov did will now be released from prison.
— Radek Sikorski (@radeksikorski) March 22, 2024
Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, later took to the X platform to say he was being kept apprised of the situation.
“The heads of the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Interior, and the coordinator of security services are informing me in an ongoing way on the circumstances of the attack in Moscow and the possible consequences for the situation in the region and the security of the country,” Tusk tweeted.Szefowie MON, MSWiA i koordynator służb specjalnych informują mnie na bieżąco o okolicznościach zamachu w Moskwie i możliwych konsekwencjach dla sytuacji w regionie i bezpieczeństwa kraju.
— Donald Tusk (@donaldtusk) March 22, 2024
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