Poland’s diplomat accuses Putin of war crimes as US envoy heads to Moscow

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski on Thursday accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of committing war crimes, as US envoy Steve Witkoff prepares to meet the Russian leader in Moscow.

"Deliberately attacking civilian infrastructure is a war crime, and Putin is not a man of peace," Sikorski said during a speech in Davos, attended by Witkoff.

Sikorski said Russian strikes on energy and heating infrastructure are forcing civilians from their homes during winter, leaving large urban areas increasingly unlivable.

"We are currently witnessing an exodus of people from major urban centers, including Kyiv. These people have done nothing to deserve this," Sikorski added.

Sikorski later reinforced his position in a post on US social media platform X, arguing that a just resolution to the conflict requires shifting pressure away from Ukraine and onto Russia, ensuring Ukraine has strong borders and understanding that Putin "is not a man of peace."

Polish President Karol Nawrocki, also speaking in Davos, addressed broader security concerns in an interview with American broadcaster CNBC, including tensions over Greenland and the war in Ukraine.

"Poland did not send its troops to Greenland knowing that it should be resolved without further complications and increased tension," he said. "We must discuss peace in Ukraine and the aggression of the Russian Federation. This is a real problem."

Nawrocki said Poland favors dialogue in disputes involving allies and stressed that Russia's aggression remains the primary threat to European security.

"Our goal should not be escalation, but a discussion about how to resolve the Greenland issue to meet the expectations of the United States, which is the largest contributor to NATO and the guarantor of global security within the framework of the values we share: freedom, democracy, and independence," Nawrocki added.

Nawrocki added that Poland is constantly in a state of hybrid war with Russia.

"We see this in the Baltic Sea, in the pressure on our borders, attacks on infrastructure and violations of our airspace. Poland is a country on NATO's eastern flank, and we in Poland are also experiencing the consequences of the war in Ukraine," he said.

Despite representing different political traditions within Poland's foreign policy establishment, Nawrocki and Sikorski have increasingly converged in their criticism of what Warsaw views as any approach that risks appeasing Moscow.