60 Minutes — Hot on the Trail. And we continue.
- A new well, not so new but rather democratic and a very civilized approach to protesting was invented this weekend in the Polish city of Gdansk. A car with the Russian number plates was stoned.
- It sounds rather Medieval but the main thing is that a grandmother with her granddaughter was getting into the car — Russian tourists. The horrifying story was posted by the kid's mother on her Facebook (запрещена в РФ) page.
- Jakub, could you elaborate on this? Is Poland Russophobic? You see the photos on the screen. A Russian car comes to Poland and gets stoned.
Jakub Korejba, political analyst (Poland): Well, Poland is Russophobic because we can't erase 300 years of history in just the 25 years that were marked by the peaceful cooperation.
First, Poland is not going to cut off the breast that is feeding it. And Kaliningrad is a big silicone breast of the Russian Federation that is feeding the owners of restaurants shops hotels and other facilities. I've recently visited Sopot that's located near Gdansk and felt as if I were abroad because all clients were Russian and all waiters — Ukrainian. The only thing left for the Polish owners is to count money.
- Look, the glass is shattered. What if the kid were inside?
- I understand. Russians are welcome in Poland because they help us fight the Russian regime. Every single euro spend by the Russians in Poland will fund our tanks, missiles Ukraine, and many other useful projects. I'm sure, that in the name of what I've just mentioned the issue will be thoroughly investigated all those guilty will be punished and I really hope that it will prove to be a provocation of your intelligence. Not the first one and not the last. Every time Russians get beaten up in Poland hairy ears were sticking up from behind of all that.
- Every time I listen to you, Jakub, I always ask myself: Do you really believe what you're saying? And in the 99% of cases, I think you're being cunning.
- If the bullies prove to be Polish there are bullies in every country and such things happen every day in Europe sometimes with the participation of Russian citizens alas, bullies are everywhere I hope they'll be demonstratively punished.
- Ekaterina Molodtsova is on the line. The mother of the child whose booster chair was covered in glass shards. You might have heard a couple of words about Lubyanka's hairy ears. What could you tell us about the situation? And why do you think it's Russophobia? It's possible some bullies accidentally targeted a Russian vehicle.
Ekaterina Molodtsova, Kaliningrad resident: Good day. I can't say it happened due to Russophobia. But our case is not singular. Similar things happen in our borderlands. And everything leads to a certain tendency because the car was the only one with the Russian number plates at the parking lot. And judging by the ending of the story we can call it, I don't know, vandalism or an assault on women and children. But I'm sure that the attack was deliberate. The car was there almost the whole day. And those bullies or bandits, I don't know how to classify them yet were waiting for my mother and my daughter to enter the car. They were circling around it. And only afterward, they began "firing" from the third floor of the nearby house.
- They were released, right?
- I don't know if they were arrested. Yesterday evening, our friends from Poland called and told us that the Gdansk police had acquired some information. Tomorrow, we'll go there and hear them out.
I don't think the investigation would be complicated because we were told by the police that the percentage of similar cases solved in Gdansk is really high. Can you imagine? It was the center of Gdansk the central street Dlugi Targ. The car was parked within five meters from it. There's a famous luxurious five-star hotel nearby that has cameras along its perimeter. We know the window of the apartment so we know the address of the culprits. I don't think the Polish police will have a hard time finding them.
Jakub Korejba: Could you please tell us how frequently you visit Poland?
- Three or four times a month.
- And how many similar cases have you heard of?
- Three or four cases were reported by the media during the last two years.
- OK, so if every Russian from Kaliningrad visits Poland three or four times a month that would be four million visits during the two year period. And we have three of four cases of vandalism among these four million. Do you think it's too frequent?
- I think…
- Excuse me, but you put a very strange question to the lady whose daughter was almost injured by your bandits.
Jakub Korejba: But she wasn't injured though.
- How could you say that? Could you please ease up that tone of yours because people almost got injured.
Jakub Korejba: First, the kid was luckily unharmed. Secondly, I'm sure that in order to remain friends with our Kaliningrad brothers our police will find and punish the bullies that are responsible for the crime. We hope so.
Nikolay Starikov, leader of Velikoye Otechestvo party: We should ask the Polish consulate or embassy the same questions. Let Poland answer how many similar cases happen to the Russian citizens on its territory.
- They became more frequent. The lady is a frequent visitor and she told us that.
Nikolay Starikov, leader of Velikoye Otechestvo party: You're asking whether it's Russophobia. Most certainly. Throwing stones at a car from the third floor — that's pure vandalism, the result of... I haven’t finished yet! Let me speak.
Jakub Korejba: She just said she doesn't think it's a case of Russophobia. Can we discuss this with her? You weren't there!
Nikolay Starikov: Their main issue is that they don't know the history. Look, it happened in the city of Gdansk that's currently Polish. Why is it called so? I'll remind you in case you've forgotten. Because Stalin insisted that the German city of Danzig become the Polish city of Gdansk. You and those stone-throwing Russophobes have forgotten that. You're also a Russophobe who doesn't know the history.
