MOSCOW, May 30. /TASS/. Poland’s political elites are plotting to occupy the western part of Ukraine, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing.

"In Poland, <...> certain political circles, let’s say, are dreaming of being allowed to do what they have been longing to do for quite a while, that is, to occupy the western part of Ukraine," the diplomat noted, commenting on Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski’s statement about the possible deployment of the country’s troops to Ukraine.

According to Zakharova, in the current international climate, Poland is seeking to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, hoping "to take revenge on Moscow for losing a geopolitical confrontation in the past, strengthen its positions in the east and relieve the phantom pain regarding West Ukraine."

The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman also stressed that the Polish authorities' remarks about their interest in rebuilding Ukraine were a cover for Warsaw's real plans, which are much more aggressive. "We understand perfectly well that what they really mean when talking about reconstruction is establishing a military presence in the west [of Ukraine], a process that could drag on forever," she explained.

Sikorski earlier told the Gazeta Wyborcza, La Repubblica and El Pais newspapers that the deployment of Polish troops to Ukraine was possible, adding that Warsaw "should not rule out any options."

French President Emmanuel Macron said on February 26 that some 20 Western countries taking part in a Paris meeting on further assistance for Kiev had discussed the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine. According to Macron, no consensus was reached on the issue but such a possibility cannot be ruled out in the future. The Polish authorities, including President Andrzej Duda Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, have repeatedly said that Warsaw had no plans to send troops to Ukraine.