At the UN, Poland’s foreign minister challenged Moscow’s narrative and pointed to a widening pattern of attacks beyond Ukraine’s front lines.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said at a meeting of the UN Security Council that Russia is escalating its aggression because of panic among its leadership. According to him, after more than four years of full-scale war, Vladimir Putin has failed to achieve his stated goals, while the Russian army is running short of troops and resources.

As reported by the online media outlet Ukrinform.

Russia is escalating the war because its leadership is panicking. After more than four years of a senseless colonial war, Vladimir Putin has achieved nothing. He is running out of troops and resources, and this needless war has killed or wounded one and a half million Russians.

– Radosław Sikorski

Sikorski also refuted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s claims about a “bloody coup” in Kyiv in 2014 and the persecution of Russian-speaking people. The Polish minister noted that Viktor Yanukovych was removed by a democratically elected parliament after protesters were shot, killing at least 100 civilians.

He also rejected claims that the Russian language has been completely banned in Ukraine. According to Sikorski, during a recent visit to Kyiv, he heard people actively speaking Russian. The minister added that the rights of national minorities are guaranteed by the Council of Europe Convention, but this does not give Russia the right to send tanks and ballistic missiles into Ukraine.

Sikorski cited strikes on civilians, including train passengers, street vendors, and cyclists, among the manifestations of Russian escalation. He also mentioned attacks on power plants, factories, shopping centers, and the port of Odesa.

The Polish minister separately pointed to violations of the airspace of European states and drone flights near Poland’s border. He also listed cyberattacks, acts of sabotage, and covert operations as signs of systematic aggression.

Addressing the Russian delegation, Sikorski said that Moscow had been trying to subjugate the Donbas for more than 12 years and had been waging war against Ukraine for more than four years, but had failed to defeat it. He urged Russia to end its imperial aggression and deliver a short message to Vladimir Putin: “Enough means enough.”