Polish PM ‘has no time’ for Boris Johnson – Bloomberg
The office of outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson canceled a trip to Warsaw after being informed by their Polish counterparts that Polish premier Mateusz Morawiecki would not have time to meet the visiting leader, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
Downing Street had been telling the media that the visit was in the pipeline until last week. According to Bloomberg, London and Warsaw discussed several possible dates for the event, including August 8, but the plan ultimately fell through.
Johnson wants to hold a series of phone calls and in-person meetings with world leaders before leaving office next month, the report said. US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron are on the list of his valedictory contacts, though both have yet to speak to the British politician, according to the outlet.
The British prime minister announced his resignation as leader of the Conservative Party in early July following a series of scandals. Former chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak and Foreign Minister Liz Truss are running to replace him at the helm of the party and as the head of the British government next month.
The apparent snub from Poland comes despite Johnson’s record of being one of the most vocal supporters of Ukraine against Russia, which he considers a key part of his political legacy. Morawiecki is likewise a strong critic of Moscow. Both nations have showered Kiev with military aid and messages of encouragement for continued fighting.
Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”
In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.
