Putin says Russia willing to restore dialogue with Warsaw: Reuters

The statements followed a congratulatory message from Putin to US President-elect Donald Trump, who won the 8 November election.

In his message to Trump, Putin said he “hopes for work together to lift Russian-US relations out of the current crisis, resolve issues on the international agenda, [and] look for effective responses to global security challenges,” the official Kremlin website said.

He added that he “is confident that Moscow and Washington can establish a constructive dialogue based on the principles of equality, mutual respect, and genuine consideration for each other’s positions.”

Accepting the accreditation from the new Polish Ambassador in Russia, Włodzimierz Marciniak, on Wednesday, Putin said that restoration of political dialogue with Poland is only possible on the basis of mutual respect and pragmatism.

“We are ready to do everything to achieve this goal,” Putin said.

Relations between Warsaw and Moscow have been tense in recent months, with the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party in Poland arguing to maintain EU sanctions against Russia.

Earlier this year, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło said: “Poland’s stance is clear: sanctions should be maintained. Russia is an aggressor, it is carrying out military operations against Ukraine, alongside running activities aimed to provoke other countries.”

Another sore point in Polish-Russian relations is the failure of Russia to return the wreckage of the Polish presidential plane which crashed in western Russia in 2010, killing all 96 people on board including President Lech Kaczyński. (rg)