Poland warns Kremlin despot Vladimir Putin – and threatens: If Putin uses Polish airspace to travel to the planned meeting with US President Donald Trump in Hungary, Warsaw could be forced to execute the international arrest warrant against him.

Poland's Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski told Radio Rodzina:"I cannot guarantee that an independent Polish court will not order the government to escort such a plane down to hand over the suspect to the court in The Hague."

He is referring to the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) seeking Putin for the abduction of Ukrainian children to Russia. Poland, like all EU states, is a member of the ICC and would therefore be obligated to arrest Putin as soon as he enters Polish territory.

Bulgaria is more open

The tone from Bulgaria is different: Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev (34) declared that his country could allow Putin to fly over"under certain conditions" – if it "serves peace." The goal must be to facilitate any possible mediation, he said, according to the BTA news agency.

However, there has not yet been a concrete request from Russia for an overflight.

US President Trump announced last week that he would meet with Putin in Budapest to seek a solution to the war against Ukraine. According to Trump, the meeting could take place within 14 days.

The Russian leader would have to cross at least the airspace of an EU state to reach Hungary – since a direct flight over Ukraine is out of the question.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (62) has already assured that Putin will be able to enter and leave the country"unhindered." Budapest is currently preparing to withdraw from the ICC – the step is expected to take effect in May 2026.

While Poland threatens arrest and Bulgaria maneuvers diplomatically, one thing is clear: every Putin flight to Europe will become a legal powder keg.