Radosław Tomasz Sikorski (; born 23 February 1963), also known as Radek Sikorski, is a Polish politician, journalist and statesman who has served as
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...
of
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
since 2023, previously holding the office between 2007 and 2014. He was a
Member of the European Parliament
A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...
Pembroke College, Oxford
Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located on Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England and VI of Scotland, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale ...
, Sikorski worked as a journalist for ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.
In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'' and ''
The Spectator
''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
'' between 1986 and 1989. He was a
war correspondent
A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories first-hand from a war, war zone.
War correspondence stands as one of journalism's most important and impactful forms. War correspondents operate in the most conflict-ridden parts of the wor ...
in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
in 1986, then in
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
in 1989. Member of the key ''Steering Committee'' of the Bilderberg Group, Sikorski was also part of the conservative
think tank
A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...
American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right think tank based in Washington, D.C., that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare ...
between 2003 and 2005. In 2012, he was included on the list of ''Top 100 Global Thinkers 2012'' published by the ''
Foreign Policy
Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...
'' magazine. In 2015, Sikorski became a Senior Fellow at the Center for European Studies of
Harvard University
Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
. In 2025 he became an Honorary Fellow at the Pembroke College, his alma mater. He is a Senior Network Member at the European Leadership Network (ELN). He is a member of the
Civic Platform
The Civic Platform (, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a Centre-right politics, centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. Since ...
, in which he is seen as being part of the party's
right wing
Right-wing politics is the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position b ...
.
Early life and education
Born in
Bydgoszcz
Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...
, Sikorski served as chairman of the local student strike committee in March 1981 while studying at the I Liceum Ogólnokształcące (High School). He travelled to the United Kingdom to study English in June 1981. After
martial law
Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
was declared in December 1981, he was granted political asylum in Britain in 1982. He studied
Philosophy, Politics and Economics
Philosophy, politics and economics, or politics, philosophy and economics (PPE), is an interdisciplinary undergraduate or postgraduate academic degree, degree which combines study from three disciplines. The first institution to offer degrees in P ...
at Pembroke College, University of Oxford.
During his time at Oxford, Sikorski was head of the Standing Committee of the debating society, the Oxford Union (where he organised debates on martial law), president of the Oxford University Polish Society, member of the Canning Club, and was elected to the Bullingdon Club, a dining society that counted among its members former British Prime Minister,
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...
, former Chancellor George Osborne, and former Prime Minister
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...
. His articles were published in prestigious Polish émigré magazines as well as Britain's '' Sunday Telegraph'' and '' Tatler'' magazines. He graduated in 1986. In 1987, Sikorski acquired British citizenship, which he renounced in 2006 upon being named Minister of Defence of Poland.
Career
Journalism (1985–1992)
In the mid-1980s, Sikorski worked as a freelance journalist for publications such as ''
The Spectator
''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
'' and ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.
In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
''. He also wrote for the Indian newspaper '' The Statesman of Kolkata''. In 1986, he travelled in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
, as he stated in his book, "to write about the war the
mujahideen
''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' (), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' (), an Arabic term that broadly refers to people who engage in ''jihad'' (), interpreted in a jurisprudence of Islam as the fight on behalf of God, religion or the commun ...
were waging against the Soviet Union". While a war correspondent for ''
The Sunday Telegraph
''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, first published on 5 February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Tele ...
,'' he brought out the first report and photographs of the US
Stinger
A stinger (or sting) is a sharp organ found in various animals (typically insects and other arthropods) capable of injecting venom, usually by piercing the epidermis of another animal.
An insect sting is complicated by its introduction of ve ...
missiles, whose use was a turning point in the war.
In 1987, Sikorski made a hundred-day journey under Soviet bombardment to the ancient city of Herat, Afghanistan. He won the 1st prize singles in the category Spot News of World Press Photo Awards in 1988 for a photograph of a family killed and mummified in their home as a result of communist bombing raid.
His adventures were presented in the documentary "Polish Mujahideen: Radosław Sikorski", produced by Discovery Channel. Sikorski described his perilous journey to Herat in his first book ''Dust of the Saints: A Journey to Herat in Time of War''.
In 1989, he became the chief foreign correspondent for the U.S. conservative magazine ''
National Review
''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...
'', reporting from Afghanistan and
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
. He received praise for his article published in January 1989, "The coming crack-up of Communism", which proved prophetic. His article describing an ambush on the Benguela Highway conducted by Jonas Savimbi's UNITA rebels attracted widespread interest.
In 1990–91, he was the
Warsaw
Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
correspondent for ''The Sunday Telegraph''. He was the author of the ''Interview of the Month'' program on the public Polish TV, in which he interviewed
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...
,
Lech Wałęsa
Lech Wałęsa (; ; born 29 September 1943) is a Polish statesman, dissident, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who served as the president of Poland between 1990 and 1995. After winning the 1990 Polish presidential election, 1990 election, Wałę ...
Henry Kissinger
Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...
Deputy Minister in Olszewski and Buzek governments (1992–2002)
Sikorski returned to Poland in August 1989. He briefly served as deputy defence minister in the Jan Olszewski government in 1992, in which he helped launch the Polish bid to join NATO. From 1998 to 2001, Sikorski served as undersecretary of state at the ministry of foreign affairs in the Jerzy Buzek's government, being deputy first to Bronisław Geremek, and then to Władysław Bartoszewski. He oversaw the consular service and initiated reforms of services for Poles abroad. He signed agreements to abolish visas with countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, Singapore and Israel among them. He was Honorary Chairman of the Foundation for Assistance to Poles in the East.
During his time as a Deputy Foreign Minister, Sikorski focused on reforms inside the Ministry and started the campaign to protest the use of the misleading term "Polish concentration camps" in western media. He introduced the "cheap visa" program for Poland's Eastern neighbors and started the recovery of post-Soviet properties in Warsaw. He introduced competitions for posts of heads of Polish Institutes abroad. When
Ted Turner
Robert Edward Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and Philanthropy, philanthropist. He founded the CNN, Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour United States cable news, ...
made a demeaning joke about Poles in a Washington speech, Sikorski demanded an apology and Turner complied. Sikorski's appeal to Polish nationals with
dual citizenship
Multiple citizenship (or multiple nationality) is a person's legal status in which a person is at the same time recognized by more than one sovereign state, country under its nationality law, nationality and citizenship law as a national or cit ...
to use the passport of the country they were visiting caused some controversy among the Polish expatriate community, but has now become an established practice.
Policy analyst in the US (2002–2005)
From 2002 to 2005, Sikorski was a resident fellow of the
American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right think tank based in Washington, D.C., that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare ...
in Washington, D.C., and executive director of the New Atlantic Initiative. He was editor of the analytical publication ''European Outlook'', having organised international conferences, including the "Ronald Reagan – Legacy for Europe" in 2003, during which prominent politicians from Eastern Europe discussed the impact the U.S. president left on the world. Other major conferences included 25th Anniversary of the birth of Solidarity, "Axis of Evil: Belarus – The Missing Link" and "Ukraine's Choice" at the time of the Orange Revolution.
Minister of National Defence (2005–2007)
In 2005, Sikorski returned to Poland and was elected senator from his home town of Bydgoszcz with 76,370 votes. He joined Prime Minister Marcinkiewicz's government as Minister of National Defence on 31 October. During his time in MoD, he moved Warsaw Pact-era files to the
Institute of National Remembrance
The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation (, abbreviated IPN) is a Polish state research institute in charge of education and archives which also includes two public prosecutio ...
, declassified
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact (WP), formally the Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance (TFCMA), was a Collective security#Collective defense, collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Polish People's Republic, Poland, between the Sovi ...
maps which demonstrated Soviet plans to use nuclear weapons in an offensive war against NATO and cancelled the military pension of Helena Wolińska-Brus, a Stalin-era prosecutor who sentenced the anti-communist Polish resistance general August Emil "Nil" Fieldorf to death. He introduced electronic auctions in procurement for defence equipment, saving the ministry a great amount of money. He announced the tender to buy a fleet of new jets for government transportation. He declassified a file of an operation codenamed "Szpak" (starling) by the Military Information Services (Wojskowe Służby Informacyjne, WSI) which documented their operations against him containing transcripts of the bugging of his home and telephone as well as hostile articles in the media inspired by WSI operatives.
Sikorski resigned on 5 February 2007, on the eve of Poland's engagement in the war in Afghanistan in protest against the activities of the chief of military intelligence, Antoni Macierewicz. Though never a member of the
Law and Justice
Law and Justice ( , PiS) is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative List of political parties in Poland, political party in Poland. The party is a member of European Conservatives and Refo ...
party, he served out the parliamentary term in the Law and Justice Senatorial Club. In the early parliamentary elections of 2007, he was elected to the Lower House (Sejm) with 117,291 votes, one of 10 best results in the country.
Minister of Foreign Affairs (2007–2014)
Sikorski was sworn in as Minister of Foreign Affairs in Donald Tusk's government on 16 November 2007, succeeding Anna Fotyga. He joined Donald Tusk's liberal-conservative
Civic Platform
The Civic Platform (, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a Centre-right politics, centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. Since ...
party and became a member of the Civic Platform national board in 2008.
Sikorski's policies are best understood in his annual statement to the
Sejm
The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland.
The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...
(Parliament). Each one was followed by a day-long debate. As Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sikorski normalized relations with Russia, and helped to terminate the Russian embargo on Polish agricultural products. In 2009, Sikorski said that Russia is needed to solve the problems of European and global theatre. Therefore, if Russia could fulfil the conditions, it could apply to join NATO. He restated NATO criteria that Russia would have to meet are: be a democratic state, have civilian control over the army, and to settle any territorial disputes with its neighbours. At the same time, he enhanced relations with Germany and France. Cooperation in the Weimar Triangle –Poland, Germany, France – was particularly intense during his term of office. Weimar Triangle meetings included consultations with third parties, such as Ukraine,
Moldova
Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...
and Russia.
As foreign minister, he turned the ministry into a global institution with 4500 employees and 100 foreign branches. Over seven years his ministry carried out various reforms, introducing the Diplomatic Security Service, global digital secure communications, ISO standards in procedures, electronic document management, a blackberry and laptop for every diplomat, a satellite phone for every posting, new visual standards book; The Foreign Service Day, a dress code, the Bene Merito honorary badge, The Polish Institute of Diplomacy, Poland's Lech Wałęsa Solidarity Prize (worth 1 mln EUR); reduced the number of chancelleries in the MFA HQ from over 30 to 2, reformed the telegram and courier systems, reduced employment while raising salaries; quadrupled ambassadors and consuls operational funds, closed down 30 embassies and consulates and opened several new ones; he opened a Polish consulate in Sevastopol, the only one representing a Western country in that city for four years; built a new EU embassy in Brussels, a new Embassy residence in Washington, DC, a new Consulate-General in London; he moved consulates in Cologne, Manchester and Madrid; he created the MFA committee on cyber defence; the European Endowment for Democracy (EED), authorized intelligence operations. During Sikorski's term in office he was a regular visitor in Moscow and his Russian counterpart
Foreign Minister
In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...
, Sergei Lavrov visited Warsaw regularly. Sikorski made his first visit in Moscow in 2008 with Donald Tusk. In 2009 he visited Moscow to enhance Polish-Russian cooperation. During one of Lavrov's visits, he engaged in Q&A session with Polish diplomats during MFA annual global ambassadors conference.
In 2008, Sikorski concluded a long negotiation with the U.S. over the siting of a missile defence base in Poland. He insisted on Polish jurisdiction over base personnel and asked the U.S. to enhance Poland's air defences as part of the deal. The agreement was finally signed with the U.S. Secretary of State,
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza "Condi" Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist serving since 2020 as the 8th director of Stanford University's Hoover Institution. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served ...
, over the objections of Russia. The agreement came less than two weeks after the outbreak of the 2008 Russo-Georgian South Ossetian war. On 17 September 2009, the Obama administration changed the plans for the base. The annex to the agreement, which envisages shorter-range missiles capable of defending Poland's territory was signed in the presence of Sikorski and Secretary of State,
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
on 3 June 2010 in Kraków.
In March 2010, Sikorski took part in the Civic Platform Presidential primaries against the then Sejm Speaker,
Bronisław Komorowski
Bronisław Maria Komorowski (; born 4 June 1952) is a Polish politician and historian who was the fifth president of Poland from 2010 to 2015. Komorowski previously served as Ministry of National Defence (Poland), Minister of National Defence ...
, who went on to defeat the late
Lech Kaczyński
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (; 18 June 194910 April 2010) was a Polish politician who served as the city mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 2005, and as President of Poland from 2005 until his death in 2010 in an air crash. The aircraft carrying ...
's brother
Jarosław
Jarosław (; , ; ; ) is a town in southeastern Poland, situated on the San (river), San River. The town had 35,475 inhabitants in 2023. It is the capital of Jarosław County in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship.
History
Jarosław is located in the ...
and becoming president. At that time, Sikorski enjoyed some of the highest approval and trust ratings among Polish politicians.
At the height of the European sovereign debt crisis in November 2011, Sikorski delivered a speech in Berlin: "Poland and the future of the European Union" in front of the German Council on Foreign Relations, the prestigious non-profit organization composed of the German foreign policy elite. He warned that EU member states faced a choice "between deeper economic integration or collapse of the Eurozone". Sikorski made an extraordinary appeal: "I will probably be the first Polish foreign minister in history to say so, but here it is: I fear German power less than I am beginning to fear German inactivity". Sikorski labelled Germany Europe's "indispensable nation" and appealed to Germany to lead in saving the
euro
The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...
, offering Poland's support. According to many political commentators and journalists, this speech made a tremendous impact on German and European politics, not least because it changed the perception of Poland: from a problematic and needy recipient of Western support to a full-fledged member of the European Union.
Sikorski was involved in the events of the winter 2014 Ukraine
Euromaidan
Euromaidan ( ; , , ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protests in Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in Kyiv. The p ...
protests at the international level. He signed on 21 February along with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and opposition leaders
Vitali Klitschko
Vitalii Volodymyrovych Klychko (; ; born 19 July 1971), known as Vitali Klitschko, is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer. He serves as mayor of Kyiv,Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and Oleh Tyahnybok, as well as the Foreign Ministers of Russia, France and Germany, a memorandum of understanding to promote peaceful changes in Ukrainian power.
Views on the Holocaust
In a February 2011 interview with Israeli journalist Adar Primor, Sikorski declared: "Nazi Germany carried out the Holocaust on our soil – against our will, but in front of our eyes". He also said: "Last time I checked the definition of the Holocaust, it was said to be a phenomenon in which a state uses industrial methods to eradicate an entire ethnic group. Horrendous events took place in Poland; there were periods during the Holocaust when people behaved heroically and others behaved like scum, but the Holocaust was the creation of the German state. We mustn't be confused about that". The extent of collaboration in German-occupied Poland remains a matter of historical debate.
Leaked conversations about geopolitics
In June 2014, a magazine in Poland published redacted transcripts of an illegally taped conversation between Sikorski and the former Polish finance minister Jacek Rostowski. The recordings were believed to have been made in the dining room of the Polish Business Council sometime between summer 2013 and spring 2014. Sikorski is heard criticizing the British Prime Minister
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...
for his handling of the EU's fiscal pact to appease Eurosceptics in the Conservative Party.
In another part of the leaked conversation, Sikorski was reported to have said: "The Polish-American alliance is worthless. It is even harmful because it creates a false sense of security for Poland." In the fragment of the record Sikorski said: "We're going to antagonize Germany and Russia, and they will think that everything is ok because we have given a blowjob to the Americans. Losers. Total losers." Sikorski stated later that in the actual conversation, he was predicting what Polish foreign policy would look like under a Law and Justice government. Sikorski argued that the tapes, which did not contain any evidence of illegality, were part of an organized attack on the government: "The Government was attacked by an organized criminal group. We are not sure who is behind it, but I hope its members will be identified and punished." He had favored NATO military bases in Poland and the Baltic states.
Ukraine
As Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sikorski was a strong supporter of closer ties with the EU's Eastern Neighbors. He opted for the integration of those countries into European structures, advocated anchoring Ukraine within the European Union and called for economic changes in Belarus. Sikorski was the main architect, along with his Swedish counterpart and friend Carl Bildt, of the eastern policy of the EU – which came to be called the Eastern Partnership. Sikorski was also a supporter of the opening of EU borders to Ukraine and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad by means of Local Border Traffic (LBT) agreements. Thanks to those agreements, citizens of neighbouring regions may travel visa-free in Poland. The agreement with Russia was signed by Sikorski and the Foreign Minister of Russia,
Sergey Lavrov
Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov (, ; born 21 March 1950) is a Russian diplomat who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (Russia), Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2004. He is the longest-serving Russian foreign minister since Andrei Gromyko d ...
, on 14 December 2011. It entered into force in July 2012 and has been kept in place despite worsening of relations in other areas.
Sikorski took on a leading role as European politician during the Maidan crisis in February 2014, which was sparked by refusal of signing the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement by since-deposed Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich. After the events of the
Euromaidan
Euromaidan ( ; , , ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protests in Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in Kyiv. The p ...
in May 2014, Sikorski labeled pro-Russian separatists as "terrorists". On 16 July, shortly after publicly accusing Russia of supporting for separatist rebels in Ukraine, as well as before an EU summit on whether to impose sanctions on Russia, Sikorski flew to Kyiv to meet with Ukraine's Foreign Minister, Pavlo Klimkin, where he argued that sanctions should be imposed on Russia.
Campaign for EU HRUFASP
On 1 August 2014, Sikorski was nominated for the post of
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Un ...
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17/MAS17) was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Kuala Lumpur that was shot down by Russian-backed forces with a Buk missile system, Bu ...
crash had helped bring European leaders together against Russia. He noted the sanctions will cause economic "losses all around", especially for Poland, but declared that Europe cannot "stand silently by when Russia annexes, for the first time since the Second World War, a neighbour's province. And now supplying sophisticated weaponry to the separatists." He called for more
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
troops in Poland and prepositioning of its equipment, as well as standing defence plans and bigger response forces. On 30 August, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk was appointed
President of the European Council
The president of the European Council is the person presiding over and driving forward the work of the European Council on the world stage. This Institutions of the European Union, institution comprises the college of heads of state or governme ...
and Mogherini prevailed over Sikorski.
When later questioned, Sikorski called it "undoubtedly the prime minister's personal success but equally a success of Poland. We take this decision as both a signal of appreciation of the policies Poland has pursued over ten years of its EU membership and a sign that the distinctions between 'old' and 'new' member states are rapidly crumbling. On the 10th anniversary of Poland's accession to the EU, a Pole will lead the institution which sets the priorities of Europe." One such priority, according to Sikorski, is "a well-interconnected network of energy infrastructure and more efficient security of supply mechanisms." He backed Tusk's proposed pan-European "Energy Union" plan.
In September 2015, after leaving the Foreign Ministry, Sikorski again visited Kyiv, arguing that if Russia moves further into Ukraine, the West should provide Ukraine with defensive weapons.
Marshal of the Sejm (2014–2015)
On 24 September 2014, Sikorski was elected Marshal of the Sejm. As Marshal, Sikorski introduced a series of reforms: new standards for parliamentary travel, streamlined voting procedures and a new visual standard for parliamentary documents. He also authorized the construction of a new building for Parliamentary Committees.
On 10 June 2015, Sikorski announced his resignation from the post in the wake of an illegal wiretaps scandal. Despite being the victim of illegal action by others, Sikorski explained that he did not want to damage
Civic Platform
The Civic Platform (, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a Centre-right politics, centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. Since ...
's chances of success in the forthcoming election – "I made this decision for the sake of the Civic Platform, the only party that can maintain Poland's high position in the world".
Policy analyst in US (2015–2018)
On 6 November 2015, Sikorski was appointed a Senior Fellow at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
Center for Strategic and International Studies
The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. From its founding in 1962 until 1987, it was an affiliate of Georgetown University, initially named the Center for Strategic and Inte ...
.
On 11 February 2016, Sikorski was elected the chairman of the Board of the Bydgoszcz Industrial-Technological Park. He has donated his salary to Bydgoski Care and Education Institutions Unit.
European Parliament (2019–2023)
In the
2019 European Parliament election
The 2019 European Parliament election was held in the European Union (EU) between 23 and 26 May 2019. It was the ninth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979. A total of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) we ...
Sikorski was elected as the MEP for the Kuyavian-Pomeranian constituency. He was elected as the new chair of the European Parliament's Delegation for relations with the United States of America (D-US). He is one of the people spied on by Polish intelligence services under the PiS government via the Pegasus spyware.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 15 May 2022, Sikorski took part in a televised debate in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
with
John Mearsheimer
John Joseph Mearsheimer (; born December 14, 1947) is an American political scientist and international relations scholar. He is R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor in the University of Chicago.
Mearsheimer is best known for dev ...
over the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
. Sikorski identified
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
as a culprit in conducting the invasion of Ukraine while Mearsheimer argued the position that Putin is pursuing a realist geopolitical plan to secure Russian national interests in the presence of perceived threats from an expanding
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
.
On 13 June, Sikorski stated that Russia appears to be in violation of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons which it inherited from the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and joined the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons. In a televised interview, Sikorski argued that Russia broke the terms of the deal by invading Ukraine. This prompted the Chairman of the State DumaVyacheslav Volodin to answer on his Telegram channel that "Sikorski is causing a nuclear conflict in the center of Europe. He does not think about the future of Ukraine or that of Poland. If his suggestions are fulfilled, these countries will cease to exist, as will Europe. Sikorski and the like are the reason why Ukraine must not only be liberated from Nazi ideology, but also demilitarized, ensuring the status of a country free of nuclear weapons."
On 27 September 2022, hours after the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline sabotage, Sikorski posted on
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
"Thank you, USA" over a picture of the gas leaks that followed the explosions of the gas pipelines Nord Stream 1 and 2. Four hours later, after numerous media outlets had speculated that Sikorski implied the U.S. blew up the pipelines, he made subsequent tweets, where he called the explosions a "special maintenance operation", alluding to the Russian government's euphemism for the invasion of Ukraine. Two days later, on 29 September, he deleted his "Thank you, USA" tweet, keeping only his follow up tweets. By 30 September he had deleted his two subsequent tweets as well.
In January 2023, Sikorski, speaking to Radio ZET, alleged that Morawiecki's Cabinet had considered partitioning Ukraine in early days following Russian invasion, when the risk of fall of Ukraine was high. Propagandist claims of similar extent have previously been made by
Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin (fortification), Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Mosco ...
representatives as well as
Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (also transliterated as Alyaksandr Ryhoravich Lukashenka; born 30 August 1954) is a Belarusian politician who has been the first and only president of Belarus since the office's establishment in 1994, making hi ...
. Said allegations were denied by the Government, pointing to high levels of military support provided to Ukraine.
2023 Polish parliamentary election
During the "June 4th March", which was part of the 2023 Polish protests, Sikorski was seen on the Balcony of a building that houses the Lawyer's office of Roman Giertych, watching the protestors from above.
Kyiv
Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
, Ukraine, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, prime minister Denys Shmyhal and the Ukrainian foreign and defence ministers. He also urged that Western countries should rearm and that military production should not be halted as long as the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
was ongoing. He is of the opinion that greed, not naïveté, drove German energy policy in much of the 21st century.
In January 2024, speaking to Israeli Foreign Minister
Israel Katz
Israel Katz (; born 21 September 1955) is an Israeli politician and member of the Knesset for Likud currently serving as Ministry of Defense (Israel), Minister of Defense and a member of the Security Cabinet of Israel. Katz has been recognized ...
, he expressed his "unwavering solidarity with Israel" during the
Gaza war
The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
.On 13 March 2024, Sikorski announced the recall of 50 ambassadors who had been appointed under the previous right-wing government.
In April 2024, the Polish government offered to repatriate Ukrainian men of military age living in Poland to Ukraine to be drafted into the Ukrainian military. Sikorski later said that this would be an ethically questionable step and Ukraine must take the lead on this issue.
Sikorski said in July 2024 that Poland would spend 5% of its GDP on defense by 2025, which would be the highest in NATO.
In November 2024, Sikorski officially confirmed he would participate in the presidential primary election organized by the Civic Coalition, his main rival being Mayor of Warsaw
Rafał Trzaskowski
Rafał Kazimierz Trzaskowski (born 17 January 1972) is a Polish politician and political scientist specializing in European studies who has served as List of city mayors of Warsaw, Mayor of Warsaw since 22 November 2018.
He served as a Member ...
. In the primary held on 22 November, he won 25% of the vote and lost to Trzaskowski.
In May 2024, Sikorski advocated for substantial increases in European defence spending, setting an example by allocating 4% of the nation's GDP to defence. Sikorski also supported several initiatives for enhanced European military cooperation, including the establishment of a 5,000-strong EU mechanised brigade, as well as incorporation of the United Kingdom and Ukraine into existing European defence structures. Sikorski spoke against the earlier " deindustrialisation" of European defense capabilities. He recommended the creation of an "investment bank" so the European Union could confront the Russian threat.
Other activities
Other activities include:
* Sir Bani Yas Forum, Member of the advisory board (since 2017)
* Bilderberg Group, Member of the Steering Committee
*
Munich Security Conference
The Munich Security Conference (MSC), formerly Munich Conference on Security Policy, is an annual conference on international security policy that has been held in Munich, Germany, since 1963.
Over the past four decades the Munich Security Con ...
, Member of the Advisory Council
* Honorary Fellow at the Pembroke College,
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
Books published
* ''Moscow's Afghan War: Soviet Motives and Western Interests,'' 1987
* ''Dust of the Saints'', 1989 (the Polish translation, ''Prochy Świętych'', was first published in 1990)
* ''The Polish House: An Intimate History of Poland'', 1998 (the American edition is titled ''Full Circle: A Homecoming to Free Poland'')
* ''Strefa Zdekomunizowana'' 'Decommunized Zone'' 2007
* ''Polska może być lepsza'' 'Poland Could Be Better'' 2018
* ''W okopie, w redakcji, w ministerstwie'' 'In Trenches, in Editorial Offices, in Ministries'' 2022
* ''Polska. Stan Państwa'' 'Poland. The State of the State'' 2022
Honors, awards and international recognition
Sikorski received the following honors and awards:
Foreign orders and decorations
*Grand Cross of the
Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...
, Germany, 2016
* Member 1st Class of the
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...
(No. 407), Ukraine, 2007
* Grand Officer of the
Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
, France, 2012
* Lithuanian Millennium Star, Lithuania, 2008
* Honorary Companion with Breast Star of the National Order of Merit, Malta, 2009
* Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star, Sweden, 2011
* Member 3rd class of the
Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise
The Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise () is a Ukrainian award. It is awarded for distinguished services to the state and people of the Ukrainian nation in the field of state building, strengthening the international prestige of Ukraine, develop ...
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...
Foreign Policy
Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...
'' for "speaking the
truth
Truth or verity is the Property (philosophy), property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth, 2005 In everyday language, it is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise cor ...
, even when it is not diplomatic."
* ''
The Spectator
''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
'' and ''
The Sunday Telegraph
''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, first published on 5 February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Tele ...
'' 'Young Writers' Award
* for "Most Popular Politician", 2006
* Laurel of Skills and Competencies 2009 awarded by the Regional Chamber of Commerce in
Katowice
Katowice (, ) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Katowice urban area. As of 2021, Katowice has an official population of 286,960, and a resident population estimate of around 315,000. K ...
Lisbon
Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
, 2015
Personal life
In the 1980s, Sikorski was in a relationship with Olivia Williams. Since 1992, he has been married to American journalist and historian Anne Applebaum; they have two sons named Aleksander (born 1997) and Tadeusz (born 2000).
See also
*
History of Poland (1989–present)
From 1989 through 1991, Poland engaged in a Democratization, democratic transition which put an end to the Polish People's Republic and led to the foundation of a democratic government, known as the Third Polish Republic (Polish language, Polish: ...
*
List of political parties in Poland
This article lists current political parties in Poland, as well as former parties dating back as far as 1918. Since 1989, Poland has had a multi-party system, with numerous competing Political party, political parties. Individual parties normall ...
2015 Polish parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on 25 October 2015. All 460 members of the Sejm and 100 senators of the Senate of Poland, Senate were elected. The election was won by the largest opposition party, the right-wing Law and Justice (Pola ...