- Polish minister Radoslaw Sikorski was asked about India’s concerns over cross-border terrorism from Pakistan
- Visibly uncomfortable and irritated, the Polish minister declined to engage and walked away
- S Jaishankar issued a public message to Warsaw urging zero tolerance for terror
A pointed remark by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on what he called the "selective targeting of India" set the tone for a visibly tense media interaction with visiting Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski in New Delhi on Monday, underlining the quiet strain that has crept into India-Poland ties in recent months.
Earlier in the day, Jaishankar had issued a sharp public message to Warsaw, saying that Poland should display "zero tolerance for terrorists and not help fuel terrorist infrastructure in our neighbourhood."
The comment was widely seen as a response to Poland's statement on Kashmir during a bilateral visit to Islamabad in October 2025.
Jaishankar also revealed that he had "candidly" shared India's views with Sikorski on several occasions in New York, Paris and again in New Delhi and reiterated that "the selective targeting of India is both unfair and unjustified."
Those remarks formed the backdrop to Sikorski's brief interaction with NDTV's Senior Executive Editor Aditya Raj Kaul, shortly after his meeting with Jaishankar.
Asked about India's concerns over selective targeting, Sikorski appeared to draw a parallel with Europe's own experience, saying, "Well, we are targeted, as the European Union was selectively targeted too. So, you know, we've joined the same club."
However, the Polish minister quickly pivoted the conversation to the Russia-Ukraine war, stressing that Warsaw expects India, as the world's most populous country and a leading voice of the Global South, to recognise what he described as a "colonial war."
Sikorski argued that Russia is trying to re-establish control over Ukraine, "which was its colony in Tsarist times and in Soviet times," and said such attempts were "completely unacceptable," adding that "the times of European colonialism are over."
"We hope that countries that were themselves victims of colonialism by Europeans see it for what it is," he said, making a clear appeal to New Delhi to take a stronger moral position on the conflict.
But the most awkward moment came when Sikorski was asked about India's concerns over cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan as the very issue at the heart of Jaishankar's warning to Poland earlier in the day. Visibly uncomfortable and irritated, the Polish foreign minister declined to engage and walked away from the interaction, bringing the exchange to an abrupt end.
The episode highlighted the growing sensitivity in the relationship, particularly after Poland's comments on Kashmir last year. While India and Poland continue to engage on broader global issues, including the Ukraine war, New Delhi has made it clear that it expects its partners to show consistency and principle when it comes to terrorism and issues affecting India's sovereignty.
Jaishankar's blunt message, both in public and in private, suggests that India is no longer willing to overlook what it sees as selective moralising, especially when it comes from countries seeking greater understanding of their own strategic concerns.
