When the Polish president last week talked about a rocket that exploded in a Polish village to someone he thought was his French counterpart, he was actually talking to a Russian joker.
President Andrey Duda’s office confirmed on Tuesday that the call took place last week after an audio recording circulated online that two Russian scammers said was behind it. The pair have a history of defrauding high-profile individuals and are believed to have ties to the Russian security services.
Duda’s office tweeted: “Following the Bzhyvodov missile explosion and during incessant conversations with heads of state and government, there was a call from a man claiming to be French President Emmanuel Macron.” “From the way the caller talked, Duda realized that this could be an attempt at fraud, and hung up,” he added.
When asked if they were behind the call, the Russian scammers Vovan and Lexus confirmed: “We talked about it on all social networks and posted a video.” During a call on November 15, a man with a Russian accent introduced himself as Macron and spoke in a friendly manner about a deadly rocket explosion near the border with Ukraine earlier in the day.
It is now widely believed that the explosion was caused by a missile fired by Ukrainian air defenses, although initial speculation pointed to Russia. “Hi Emmanuel. Thank you for calling. You know, it’s very difficult,” Duda said. He added that the explosion was caused by a missile “that was fired and we don’t know who is responsible” and that he was awaiting the outcome of the investigation. “Emmanuel, believe me, I am very careful. I don’t blame the Russians. I don’t want to fight Russia.”
Duda also said that Poland is not considering complying with Article 5 of the founding treaty of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which requires member states to help each other if one of them is attacked. The Polish president was also asked about Russia’s claims that Kyiv is preparing to use dirty bombs, and he replied: “I’m more concerned about some of the problems with nuclear power plants in Ukraine. I’m more worried about a nuclear holocaust.”
