Russia's response to demolition of Red Army monuments in Poland to be asymmetric - newspaper
MOSCOW. July 31 (Interfax) - Russia is considering and preparing asymmetrical measures in response to the adoption of a law in Poland that bans communist symbols and envisages the demolition of Red Army monuments in the country, the Izvestia newspaper said on Monday, citing sources in the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
"The Foreign Ministry of Russia told Izvestia that Moscow would not leave Warsaw's unfriendly actions unanswered in any case. The ministry added that these measures would be of an 'asymmetrical nature'," the newspaper said.
Russian diplomatic sources told Izvestia that several options of response measures were being considered at the moment, including personal sanctions against Polish politicians involved in drafting the aforementioned law, economic measures of influence and also active work at all possible international platforms aimed at drawing attention to this problem.
Some Russian politicians said in media reports that it could also be advisable for Russia to take response measures in relation to Poland that would "mirror" Warsaw's actions, the newspaper said.
In particular, Russian Federation Council International Affairs Committee Chairman Konstantin Kosachyov said at a recent press conference in Moscow that Russia, for example, could stop tending to Polish memorials, obviously referring to the Katyn and Mednoye complexes. The senator also said that the place near the city of Smolensk where the airplane carrying Polish President Lech Kaczynski crashed in 2010 could also be included in the list of memorial sites.
In addition to that Russia will soon call on international platforms such as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly to react to Poland's actions and also will forward a message to European countries' parliaments, several Russian senators told the newspaper.
The Russian Foreign Ministry made it clear in remarks to Izvestia that a "response to Warsaw's demarche will not be long in coming in any case."