WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The twin brother of Poland's late President Lech Kaczynski said Sunday he hopes the plane crash that killed his brother and many other prominent Poles in Russia last month will help bring about a historic change in relations between the Slavic nations.
Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who is now running to succeed his brother as president, issued a video addressed to Russians expressing words of warmth for the powerful neighbor — a country he has long been suspicious of.
He thanked the Russians who helped Poles, lit candles and made other gestures of sympathy after the plane crash killed President Lech Kaczynski, the first lady and 94 others on April 10.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Russian friends," Kaczynski said, beginning his three-minute message. "We thank you for every tear, for every lit candle, for every moving word."
"There are moments in history that can change everything, that can change the course of history. I hope — and this hope is shared by millions of Poles, among them those who supported Lech Kaczynski — that such a moment is coming."
The clip, which has Russian subtitles, was presented at a news conference in Warsaw by members of Kaczynski’s nationalist and conservative Law and Justice party and was posted on YouTube.
Kaczynski delivers his message sitting at a table in what appears to be a family sitting room and wears the same attire he has donned in public since the plane crash: a black jacket and black tie.
He said that his brother was supposed to have attended the elaborate Victory Day parade Sunday in Moscow celebrating the Allied victory in World War II — adding that "my beloved brother" would have looked with pride on the Polish soldiers who marched and would have remembered the millions of Russian soldiers who died defeating Nazi Germany.
But he said his brother would also have remembered the more than 20,000 Polish officers, intellectuals and others killed by Stalin’s forces 70 years ago in what have become known as the Katyn massacres. President Kaczynski’s plane crashed en route to a memorial service for those victims.
Also Sunday, hundreds of people rallied in Warsaw to express their discontent over the pace of the Russian-led investigation into the crash. So far investigators have said they believe there were no technical problems with the plane and that human error caused the crash.
Many details, however, remain unknown.
