Rishi Sunak says missile that hit Poland COULD be Ukrainian

Rishi Sunak says missile that hit Poland COULD be Ukrainian but PM insists only Russia can be blamed for fatal strike

Rishi Sunak tells MPs missile strike on Poland could have been caused by Ukraine
But PM says ‘the blame belongs solely to Russia’ for fatal blast in Przewodow
Western leaders at odds with Ukraine’s President Zelensky over Tuesday’s strike

Rishi Sunak told MPs today that a fatal missile strike on NATO member Poland could have been caused by Ukraine – but the Prime Minister insisted only Russia was to blame.

In the Commons, Mr Sunak condemned the latest Russian ‘barbarity’ against Ukraine this week as he addressed Tuesday’s incident in eastern Poland.

In the immediate hours after a missile blast on a farm in Przewodow – just four miles from Poland’s border with Ukraine – there were concerns Russia had launched a direct assault on a NATO member.

This prompted fears of a major escalation in the Ukraine conflict, with fellow NATO members obliged to act if one of their number comes under attack.

But Polish President Andrzej Duda, US President Joe Biden, and NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg have since said it was probable the missile that landed in Poland, killing two, was part of Ukraine’s air defences.

This has put them at odds with Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky, who has insisted ‘it wasn’t our missile’ and demanded his country’s officials be able to take part in an ongoing investigation.

Rishi Sunak condemned the latest Russian ‘barbarity’ against Ukraine this week as he addressed the incident in eastern Poland

The missile blast occurred on a farm in Przewodow – just four miles from Poland’s border with Ukraine

Mr Sunak, giving a statement to MPs on this week’s G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, told the Commons that – whether or not the missile was Ukrainian – the blame for the fatal strike lay firmly with Russia.

The blast in Przewodow came as Russia launched what is believed to have been its biggest wave of missile strikes on Ukraine since the start of its invasion in February.

‘On the very day that I and others confronted Russia’s foreign minister (Sergey Lavrov) across the G20 summit table with the brutality of his country’s actions,’ Mr Sunak said.

‘On the very day that President Zelensky addressed the G20 with a plan to stop the war, Russia launched over 80 separate missile strikes on Ukraine.

‘The targets were innocent people and civilian infrastructure; the aim to cast the population into darkness and cold.

‘Once again Russia has shown its barbarity and given the lie to any claim that they are interested in peace.’

Turning to the incident in Przewodow, the PM added: ‘During the bombardment of Ukraine on Tuesday an explosion took place in Eastern Poland.

‘The investigation into this incident is ongoing – and it has our full support.

‘As we have heard the Polish and American Presidents say, it is possible that the explosion was caused by a Ukrainian munition, which was deployed in self-defence.

‘Whether or not this proves to be the case, no blame can be placed on a country trying to defend itself against such a barrage.

‘The blame belongs solely to Russia.’

Mr Sunak also used his Commons statement to put pressure on Russia to continue to uphold a UN-brokered agreement, which is set to renew this weekend, allowing Ukrainian grain exports to leave Black Sea ports.

‘Two thirds of Ukraine’s wheat goes to developing countries. With famine looming, it is desperately needed and Russia must uphold its part of the deal,’ the PM said.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, responding to the PM’s statement, told MPs: ‘Whatever the outcome of the investigation into the missile incident in Poland, it is a stark reminder of the danger Russia’s unjustifiable war has brought to the border of our NATO allies.’

Source: Read Full Article