The Foreign Ministers of the Lublin Triangle member countries (Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland) signed a Roadmap for Further Cooperation, a Declaration on European Heritage and Common Values, and adopted a Joint Action Plan to Counter Disinformation.

The talks between Ukrainian Foreign Ministers Dmitry Kuleba, as well as his Lithuanian and Polish counterparts Gabrielyus Landsbergis and Zbigniew Rau, were held in Vilnius, on the sidelines of the 4th International Conference on Reforms in Ukraine.

The roadmap defines the main areas of cooperation in the Lublin Triangle, including defense, security, energy and trade.

The parties plan to hold summits of the Lublin Triangle at the highest level.

This is stated in a message published on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

The participants in the "triangle" are also going to interact with other states within the framework of international organizations.

  • Companion of Ivan Mazepa Philip Orlik

  • © Wikimedia

The second document, the Declaration on European Heritage, recognizes the constitution of Philip Orlik as an integral part of the common cultural and legal heritage of Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry noted that this document influenced the formation of the "European identity" of Ukrainians, Lithuanians and Poles.

Let us recall that Philip Orlik (1672-1742) was a colleague of Ivan Mazepa and was with him as a general clerk. After Mazepa's death, Orlik was elected his successor. The Constitution, referred to in the statement of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, was also called "Pacts and Constitutions of Laws and Liberties of the Zaporizhzhya Army" and was adopted by the Cossack Council in Bendery (at that time - the territory of the Ottoman Empire, where Mazepa fled after the defeat of the Swedish king Charles XII from the Russian troops near Poltava) in 1710. Also, the document is known under the name "Bender Constitution", which spoke about the state structure of Ukraine as a Cossack state.

In particular, the constitution provided for the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Constantinople on Ukrainian territory, determined the boundaries of the state, and also implied the restoration of the economic and social rights of the Sich, canceled by tsarist decrees.

However, the document never came into force and remained in history only as a political and legal project.

Reverse polonization

The declaration signed by Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland also enshrines the “European perspective” of Ukraine and condemns “Russian aggression”, “the temporary occupation of Ukrainian territories and Russia's destructive actions in the Black Sea,” and also expresses support for the Ukrainian project “Crimean Platform”.

“In it (the signed document. -

RT

) we state what unites our countries not only in the past, but also in the future.

In the future, it will undoubtedly be a united Europe.

Both Lithuania and Poland confirm in this declaration that they will make every effort to make Ukraine a member of NATO and the EU, support the Crimean Platform, and condemn Russian aggression against our state, "said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba.

As for the Action Plan, it provides for the preparation of regular reports and the development of a mechanism for joint response to Russian "destabilizing campaigns", as well as the exchange of experience to counter hybrid threats.

  • Lublin

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According to Kuleba, all three countries participating in the Lublin Triangle have "unique experience" in countering "Russian disinformation."

The minister also said that the Lublin Triangle format can be viewed as an alternative to the “Russian world”.

“Today we signed and adopted important documents of the Lublin Triangle.

They reflect the common European past, joint opposition to modern challenges and the common future of Ukraine in the EU and NATO, together with Poland and Lithuania.

The Lublin Triangle is being strengthened, filled with practical mechanisms of interaction and is gaining new weight.

In fact, we are offering an alternative to the “Russian world” in our region, ”Kuleba said in a statement.

This statement by the Ukrainian minister has already been commented on in an interview with RIA Novosti by a member of the State Duma committee on international affairs, Elena Panina.

According to the deputy, in reality, the "Lublin Triangle" is not an alternative to the "Russian world", but an alternative to the "European future", which was advocated by the Ukrainian "Euromaidan" in 2014.

“In this scenario, Ukraine is not a“ great European state ”, but a vassal and an economic appendage of the peripheral countries of Eastern Europe,” Panina said.

In her opinion, Ukraine is now returning to the position in which it was before the uprising of Bohdan Khmelnitsky.

Experts share this view of the situation.

As the deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics of the Moscow State Pedagogical University Vladimir Shapovalov noted in a commentary to RT, in fact, the Lublin Triangle format unites the contours of territories that were previously part of the Commonwealth.

“The only thing missing is Belarus, which the participating countries are surrounded from three sides.

And the "triangle" is, in fact, an anti-Russian alliance.

Therefore, Dmitry Kuleba announced the opposition to the "Russian world".

However, in reality, we are talking about Ukraine's abandonment of its own essence and history - after all, even according to the historical concept adopted by the Ukrainian state, Ukraine is descended from Kievan Rus.

Polonization at one time was by no means a joyful process for the population of Ukraine and caused many contradictions and tragedies, "the expert recalled in a commentary on RT.

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Shapovalov also recalled that at one time the hostility of Ukrainian nationalists to the Poles reached such intensity that it resulted in the Volyn massacre.

It is strange to talk about the unity of the Ukrainian and Polish peoples against such a historical background, the expert believes.

“So far, the impression is that this project is artificial and is only needed to fight Russia as the“ vanguard ”of the West,” added Shapovalov.

A similar opinion is shared by Vadim Trukhachev, a lecturer at the Department of Foreign Regional Studies and Foreign Policy of the Historical and Archival Institute of the Russian State University for the Humanities.

“Instead of the 'Russian world', the region is simply being offered the Polish world.

Poland sees itself as a leading power, and Ukraine as the central link of its sphere of influence in the region, "the expert said in an interview with RT.

Interesting geometry

As a reminder, the Lublin Triangle format was created by Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine in July 2020.

The agreement between the countries was concluded in Lublin, Poland.

The countries then announced the recognition of the centuries-old historical and cultural ties between the peoples of Ukraine, Lithuania and Poland and emphasized the strategic role of cooperation through the Eastern Partnership, as well as the Three Seas Initiative.

At the same time, Lublin was not chosen by the participants of the format by chance - it was in this city that the union between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was concluded in 1569, as a result of which a federal state - Rzeczpospolita - arose.

  • Svetlana Tikhanovskaya

  • Reuters

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It should be noted that in the future, the participants in the "triangle" expect to include Belarus in it.

Earlier, in January 2021, a representative of the Belarusian opposition Svetlana Tikhanovskaya even took part in a meeting of the Lublin Triangle.

As the then head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Dmitry Kuleba noted, the participants in the format would like Belarus to be included in it in the future.

“We would like the democratic Belarus to join in the end and turn the Lublin Triangle into the Lublin Square.

But the time has not yet come for this, ”Kuleba noted then.

According to Vladimir Shapovalov, Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine, from the very foundation of the Lublin Triangle, advocated the inclusion of Belarus in it.

“It is no coincidence that the leaders of the Belarusian protest are on the territory of Lithuania and Poland.

So far, these attempts have not yielded results, since the Belarusian society is determined to integrate with Russia.

But Warsaw, Kiev and Vilnius will not abandon their plans in relation to Belarus, ”the expert said.

Vadim Trukhachev believes that due to the active role of Poland in organizing the Belarusian protests in 2020, the Lublin Triangle will not be able to involve Minsk in its composition in the foreseeable future.

At the same time, analysts state that the “Lublin Triangle” has not achieved serious results during the year of its existence.

“This union has no practical achievements.

This is not the first "chimera" that is being created near the western borders of Russia.

At one time there was a GUAM union (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova), and the Eastern Partnership is still in operation.

All these projects are part of the same strategy of the West, ”Shapovalov said.

The expert doubts that the Lublin Triangle has a chance to become a real political force in the future.

“Moreover, I doubt that it will exist at all in the future.

The contradictions between the participating countries are too strong, ”summed up Vladimir Shapovalov.