The Kremlin can be stopped and even defeated. But as the West, we have simply forgotten about it – said Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski in a prestigious lecture organized by the Ditchley Foundation, which is given by one person every year. Sikorski also said that Vladimir Putin does not expect to recover frozen Russian assets, “but he also does not think that we would have enough courage to take them over”. – So far, we have shown that he is right – said the minister.
Minister Radoslaw Sikorski he gave a lecture on Saturday at the Ditchley Park estate near Oxford, where the Ditchley Foundation is based.
– We have to learn how to use the escalation game again. For example: we can seize all Russian state assets worth EUR 300 billion. Putin has already written them off and doesn't expect to get them back. But he also doesn't think we have the courage to take them over. So far, we are showing that he is right, noted the head of Polish diplomacy.
“The Kremlin can be stopped and even defeated”
He argued that he was a Russian dictator Vladimir Putin regrets that the Soviet Union fell, so he has decided to take revenge. He warned that part of that revenge is a new axis of autocratic states that challenges our values, our security and our way of life.
He expressed confidence that the West could fend off this threat. – We must prevent a wider conflict, we must also win. Together, as part of an international alliance of democracies, we will make it, Sikorski said.
– The Kremlin can be stopped and even defeated. We simply forgot about it – he emphasized. – Ronald Reagan used to say that his strategy towards the Soviet Union was simple: “We win, they lose”. I like this approach – Sikorski emphasized, recalling the words of the former president USA.
A prestigious lecture. It is delivered by one person each year
The Ditchley Foundation is a foundation established in 1958 dealing with international relations, in particular British-American relations, and, since Brexit, also deepening Great Britain's relations with continental Europe. Apart from the conferences organized by the Ditchley Foundation, the most important aspect of its activities are the annual lectures, which have been held since 1962 and each year one significant figure in international relations is invited to deliver them.
Radosław Sikorski's lecture was the 60th in the history of the Ditchley Foundation. A year ago, the director was invited to CIA William Burns, two years ago – former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and in 2020 – former Prime Minister Australia Malcolm Turnbull.
Main image source: Sebastian Indra/Ministry of Foreign Affairs