Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki warned Ukraine against establishing a close alliance with Germany in a speech at a political convention on Oct. 1, the Polish news outlet Dziennik Gazeta Prawna reported.
At a gathering of Poland's Law and Justice (PiS) party in Katowice ahead of the Oct. 15 parliamentary elections, Morawiecki addressed his remarks directly to President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"I understand that it seems to [President Zelensky] now that he will have a close alliance with Germany. Let me warn you, Germany will always want to cooperate with the Russians over the heads of Central European countries," Morawiecki said.
Morawiecki went on to emphasize Poland's support for Ukraine following Russia's full-scale invasion.
"It was Poland that welcomed a few million Ukrainians under our roofs, it was the Poles who welcomed the Ukrainians, it was we who helped the most at the time when the Germans wanted to send 5,000 helmets to besieged Kyiv," the Polish prime minister said.
"It is worthwhile for you not to forget this, President Zelensky," he said.
On the same day, Morawiecki's opponent, former prime minister Donald Tusk, led a rally in Warsaw to huge crowds.
Tusk recently called for Poland to provide unstinting military aid to Ukraine. His remarks came shortly after Morawiecki announced that Poland would stop sending weapons to Ukraine to focus on its own security needs.
Officials later clarified that Poland will meet all its existing agreements on arms deliveries.
At the convention in Katowice, Morawiecki also defended Poland's decision to extend the Ukrainian grain imports ban after the European Commission ended the embargo.
"We will defend Polish agriculture against Ukrainian agro-oligarchs," Morawiecki said.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
(Updated: )
