Polish President Andrzej Duda believed he was talking to the French president following last week's deadly missile strike on the Polish-Ukraine border — but it was a Russian prankster.
Duda's office revealed that the president believed he was on the phone with French leader Emmanuel Macron until he observed: "the unusual way the interlocutor conducted the conversation that there might have been a fraud attempt."
However, the announcement came after notable Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus claimed credit for the hoax. The pair had been responsible for targeting politicians and celebrities in the past, posing as United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in 2020.
A transcript obtained by the BBC claims the caller attempted to probe Duda's thoughts on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and blame Russia for the attack.
"Do you think I want to have war with Russia?" Duda reportedly responded. "Believe me ... I don't want to have war with Russia, and believe me, I am extra careful."
"I'm talking only about Article 4. I don't talk about Article 5," he clarified, putting his foot down against the idea of invading Russia.
The news comes after a missile strike near the Polish village of Przewodów, which lies 75 miles from the Ukrainian city of Lviv, killed two individuals. According to U.S., Polish, and NATO officials, the strike is not believed to have originated from Russia.
"Ukraine's defense was launching their missiles in various directions, and it is highly probable that one of these missiles, unfortunately, fell on Polish territory," Duda said Wednesday. "There is nothing, absolutely nothing, to suggest that it was an intentional attack on Poland."
© 2023 Newsmax. All rights reserved.