Warsaw: Russia foments feud between Poland and Israel
The Russian “troll brigades” that are active in the Polish segment of social networks have been deliberately spreading anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic propaganda, reported Israel Hayom, citing sources in the Polish government administration. “We have no doubt that this is Russian activity,” the anonymous sources said.
Warsaw is apparently inclined to resolve the Holocaust-related conflict with Israel, because, first and foremost, it does not benefit Poland, drawing increased attention to a topic that is painful to the Poles.
According to the sources, “the severe criticism expressed in the US and in Poland concerning the words of Israel’s acting Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz plays an important role in settling the crisis in relations with Israel.”
The Polish diplomats say said the condemnation of Katz expressed by the US government, the Hebrew community of Poland and the major Hebrew organizations in the US have helped to remove some of the intensity of the conflict.
Poland is hoping for an apology from Yisrael Katz, a source in the Polish Foreign Ministry observed, even something as simple as “I was wrong, I apologize,” will do. Poland has also heard the statement by Katz’s fellow party member Tzachi Hanegbi, who said that what Katz said was “stupid” and “factually incorrect”.
During an interview on the Israeli TV channel i24, Katz had cited former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, who said that “Poles suck up antisemitism with their mothers’ milk”.
Wojciech Kolarski, official spokesperson for the Polish president, declared: “What Minister Katz said was harmful and painful, but this is the problem of one politician and his utterances. We cannot allow one person to become the cause of strife between countries and nations.”
The political conflict between Poland and Israel is apparently drawing to a close, although, in light of the Poles’ resentment and the Israelis’ implacability on matters of the Holocaust, its echo could make bilateral relations more difficult for a long time.