DISINFO: Russia removed the Polish flag from the Katyn Memorial because of Polish Russophobia
SUMMARY
The presence of the Polish flags on the territory of the Russian state institutions is inappropriate because of the openly hostile Polish position towards Russia and the Russophobia of the Polish officials. In addition, Poland conducts a deliberate campaign aimed at destruction of the Soviet monuments. In the past, the Polish flag placed in the Katyń and Miednoye Memorials was a gesture of goodwill on the part of Russia – Russia had no obligations in terms of Polish flags there.
RESPONSE
This message is a part of the Kremlin’s widespread disinformation narrative claiming that an anti-Russian, Russophobic Poland is deliberately worsening its relations with Russia and implements aggressive policies.
On June 25, the Russian authorities decided to remove the Polish flag from the Katyn WWII Memorial. This step was realised not because of the alleged Polish “Russophobia” – it is a part of the deliberate Kremlin’s campaign to limit historical remembrance of the Soviet crimes committed against Poland.
The Katyń Massacre is a symbol of the criminal policy of the USSR against the Polish nation. In Spring 1940, almost 22.000 Polish prisoners of war were executed by the NKVD in Katyn, Kharkiv and Kalinin (Tver). The Massacre was carefully considered and organised by the Soviet leadership. Up until 1991, the Soviet authorities refused to accept their responsibility for this crime, blaming Nazi Germany for the mass-murders of Polish prisoners of war. In 1992, the Russian President Boris Yeltsin submitted documents to President Lech Walesa confirming the Soviet blame for this crime. Read more about the Katyn Massacre here.
Throughout 2020, the Russian authorities took several steps regarding the Katyń Massacre that may be considered as historical revisionism. In May 2020, the municipal authorities of the city of Tver ordered the removal of two plaques commemorating the memory of the victims of the Katyń Massacre. In November 2020, the Russian authorities organised a conference on the Katyń Massacre – several participants of the conference promoted the idea that the USSR and the NKVD were not responsible for this crime. These statements are an evident example of historical revisionism promoted by Russia – the Polish authorities continue to demand an investigation into this Soviet crime against the Polish nation.
The Polish Institute of Historical Remembrance presented its protest against the Russian attempts to distort the truth about Soviet crimes.
See other examples of similar messages claiming that constant intimidation with Russia is used to make Poland economically dependent on the USA, the Polish authorities created an insane hysteria of intimidation with Russia, used for the needs of domestic politics and the national security strategy of Poland is a manifestation of traditional Russophobia of the Polish authorities.