In May, Poland ordered Russia’s consulate in Krakow to shut after accusations Moscow orchestrated fire at Warsaw shopping centre.

Russia says it will close Poland’s consulate in Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania, after Warsaw decided to shut down the Russian consulate in Krakow.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the move on Friday.

This follows Poland ordering the Russian consulate in the southern city of Krakow to shut in May after authorities accused Moscow of orchestrating a fire that destroyed a Warsaw shopping centre last year.

The May 12, 2024, arson destroyed more than 1,000 shops at the Marywilska 44 centre, but no one was injured.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski accused Russian special services of involvement, saying there was evidence they had committed a “reprehensible act of sabotage” against the centre. Russia denied any involvement in the attack.

In May, Russia promised an “adequate response” to Poland’s move, and on Friday, the Foreign Ministry said it was “withdrawing consent for the functioning of the Consulate General of Poland in Kaliningrad from August 29”.

It also said Poland’s charge d’affaires in Russia was summoned and handed a formal note announcing the move, citing “unfriendly” and “unjustified” actions by the Polish government.

“This step was caused by the unfounded and hostile actions of the Polish side, expressed in the reduction of the Russian consular presence on the territory of Poland,” it added.

Strained ties

Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Pawel Wronski said Russia’s decision to close the consulate was unjustified.

The possibility of this decision “was taken into account by the Foreign Ministry”, he told reporters on Friday. But he added that this “doesn’t mean that it is a legitimate decision”.

“Unlike Russia, Poland does not engage in sabotage, cyberattacks or conduct actions against the Russian state,” he said.

He added that Poland would “respond adequately” to the decision, without elaborating.

Diplomatic ties between Moscow and Warsaw have been historically strained and have frayed further over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Poland, a NATO and European Union member, is one of the main countries through which Western nations supply weapons and ammunition to Kyiv.

In May 2024, Poland imposed restrictions on the movements of Russian diplomats on its soil due to Moscow’s “involvement” in what it called a “hybrid war”.

Poland later ordered the closure of Russia’s consulate in Poznan and said it was willing to close the other consulates if acts of “terrorism” continued.

In January, Russia closed the Polish consulate in St Petersburg in retaliation.

Apart from the embassies, both countries now only have one consulate left on their respective territories.