The night of June 9-10, 2025, brought further proof that for the Russian Federation, there are no boundaries—neither territorial nor moral. While Kyiv was fighting one of the most massive drone attacks in the history of this war, Russian terror took the form of absolute evil in Odessa. The target was a maternity hospital. Moscow decided to turn a place where life should begin into a graveyard. In the face of this tragedy, the voice of Polish diplomacy was quick and firm, becoming more than just a diplomatic note. It became a weapon in the fight against disinformation.
It was a night when the sky over Ukraine was darkened by swarms of Iranian Shaheds. Russia’s scorched earth tactic, carried out from the air, targeted what allows civilians to survive: Kiev’s energy, heating, and water supply infrastructure. But it was the images from Odessa that shook us the most. Striking a maternity hospital is not a “navigation error.” It is a deliberate strategy of intimidation, terrorism in its purest form, aimed at breaking the morale of a nation by attacking its most vulnerable members—mothers and newborns.
A voice that pierces the “fog of war”
In response to these events, the Polish Embassy in Kyiv issued a statement that leaves no room for interpretation:
“In response to one of the most horrific mass drone attacks on civilian targets in Kyiv, we strongly condemn Russia’s ruthless actions against Ukraine. Kiev’s urban infrastructure has been severely damaged, and a maternity hospital in Odessa has been attacked. There are fatalities and injuries. We call on Russia to stop these barbaric attacks.”
Why is this short statement so important? In the era of hybrid warfare, which Russia is waging in parallel with kinetic actions, words carry the weight of ammunition. The Kremlin has mastered the art of blurring responsibility. Before the dust had settled in Odessa, Russian propagandists surely already had their scenarios ready: that “NATO mercenaries” were hiding in the hospital, that it was a “Ukrainian provocation,” or that the building was empty.
The swift response of the Polish diplomatic mission acts as a kind of “fact-checking” at the highest level. When a NATO and EU member state, with its “eyes and ears” on the ground, officially confirms: “yes, civilian facilities were attacked,” “yes, it was a maternity hospital,” “yes, it was barbaric” – it takes the weapon out of the hands of Russian trolls and “useful idiots” in the West.
Calling evil by its name
The language of diplomacy is often unbearably cautious. It is full of words such as “concern,” “appealing to both sides,” and “monitoring the situation.” Meanwhile, Poland’s reaction on June 10, 2025, breaks with these euphemisms. The use of phrases such as “ruthless actions” and “barbaric attacks” restores the proper measure of things.
This is crucial in combating the West’s information fatigue. The world, bombarded with thousands of news stories, is becoming indifferent. Crimes are becoming commonplace. A clear signal from Warsaw reminds Europe: this is not a “regional conflict,” it is the slaughter of innocents. It is a reminder that on the other side of the border there is no partner for talks on “security architecture,” but a bandit who targets incubators.
The consequence of memory
The attack on the hospital in Odessa brings back the darkest memories of Mariupol in March 2022. Back then, the Russians also bombed a maternity ward and then lied for months that the injured pregnant woman was an actress. Today, in 2025, we see that nothing has changed in their mentality. The methods remain the same, only the geographical coordinates of the crimes have changed.
That is why it is so important not to remain silent. The reaction of the Polish Embassy is a signal to Ukrainians: “We see your suffering, we are witnesses to your tragedy, and we will testify about it before the world.” In an information war in which Russia is trying to turn the tables and make the victim the aggressor, such testimony is invaluable.
Russian propaganda fears the truth more than HIMARS. It fears the documentation of crimes because it knows that every such diplomatic message is another brick in the indictment at a future tribunal. Today, Polish diplomacy passed the test of decency by defending the truth about the night when the Muscovites decided to fight newborn babies.
It is our duty—as journalists, politicians, and ordinary citizens—not to let this message get lost in the noise of the news. We must repeat it until it reaches everyone who still deludes themselves that it is possible to “get along” with Putin. You don’t negotiate with a barbarian; you stop a barbarian.
Screenshot from the Facebook page of the Polish Embassy in Kyiv
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