Polish FM Cuts Short Iran Visit to Tackle Crimea Crisis
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski cut short a visit to Iran on Saturday to handle the deepening crisis in Crimea after pro-Russian gunmen seized the government and parliament buildings.
"I have to shorten my visit to Iran due to the developments in Crimea and return to Poland," Sikorski told a joint news conference with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.
"The situation is getting more critical in Crimea."
Sikorski arrived in Iran on Friday for what had been scheduled as a four-day visit, including a meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
As he spoke, the Polish foreign ministry put out a statement in Warsaw calling for an end to "provocative" troop movements in Crimea, a majority-Russian Ukrainian territory.
"We are the only country that has a consulate operating in Crimea and unfortunately they confirmed that Russian forces are present," Sikorski said.
"We have been closely following the developments there," he added.
Sikorski, along with his French and German counterparts has taken a prominent diplomatic role in the Ukrainian crisis.
Ex-communist Poland has also long been active in drawing ex-Soviet eastern neighbor Ukraine closer to the European Union and NATO, and so further out of the orbit of its Soviet-era master Russia.
Source: Agence France Presse
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