How the Russian-Ukrainian war broke out – on the backstage of international politics from Jakub Kumoch’s perspective

Abstract

This conversation between Igor Janke and Jakub Kumoch is an important source for research into the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the role of Polish diplomacy in the winter and spring of 2022. After all, it is not often that direct participants in high-level international talks share their memories of key historical moments, along with many important details and observations, less than a year after the events themselves. This is what Jakub Kumoch does – and he does it in a colourful way. A Polish political scientist and diplomat who has served as Poland’s ambassador to Switzerland, Turkey and other countries, Kumoch was State Secretary for International Affairs in the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland from 2021 to 2023. During this time, he was in close contact with many governments, including those of Ukraine, the United States, France and Germany. In the form of a long chat between two friends, he shared his memories of this period with Igor Janke, a well-known Polish journalist. This conversation is also extremely interesting because it vividly illustrates the thinking in Polish government circles about the challenges to regional and global security associated with Russia’s war against Ukraine and the future of Polish-Ukrainian relations, including the historical dialogue. This interview was recorded on 19 January 2023. It was broadcast three days later on Janke’s Układ Otwarty podcast and on this author’s YouTube channel. 1 Jakub Kumoch resigned from his government post just one week before the interview, on 12 January 2023. He cited important family reasons. The original Polish version of this interview is available on the Układ Otwarty YouTube channel. We are publishing an English translation of it here. The lively, spontaneous exchange of ideas and the colloquial language of these two friends, as well as some broken thoughts and threads – a feature characteristic of many live conversations – may give some readers the impression of an under-edited conversation. This is a false impression. In accordance with the requirements of the source material, we are publishing the interview in its entirety, without any cutting or editing, and with editorial insertions in only a few places to make the flow of thought more understandable