Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski says organized crime is to blame for a leaked recording in which he said his country’s relationship with the United States was “worthless.”
Sikorski has not argued that it isn’t his voice on the recording and hasn’t denied making the comments.
{mosads}But he has said the comments never should have become public and said he’s a victim of a crime.
“The government was attacked by an organized crime group,” Sikorski told The Associated Press in Luxembourg, where he is attending a meeting of European foreign ministers.
“We don’t yet know who stands behind it; we are not certain yet. But it is being checked and I hope the justice system determines the identities of the group members and, above all, of the masterminds,” he said.
Wprost obtained a secretly recorded conversation on Sikorski’s remarks and published a transcript on Sunday.
Poland’s ties to the U.S. are “”even harmful because it creates a false sense of security,” Sikorski was quoted as saying, according to a BBC News translation.
Sikorski reportedly used vulgar language and compared Poland’s inferior standing to the U.S. to giving oral sex.
“(We are) suckers, total suckers. The problem in Poland is that we have shallow pride and low self-esteem,” he said.
The revelations come just weeks after President Obama visited Poland’s capital of Warsaw and announced a commitment to providing security to Central and Eastern Europe.