WARSAW 

Russia has refused to vacate its former consulate building in the northern Polish city of Gdansk, defying a government order to close the mission and escalating a legal and diplomatic dispute involving contested property claims and millions of zloty in unpaid fees.

The dispute follows a decision announced on Nov. 19 by Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski to close the Russian consulate in Gdansk, a move Warsaw said was retaliation for Russia’s hostile actions, including intelligence activity and hybrid pressure against Poland and its allies. Russian officials were given until Dec. 23 to vacate the premises.

Although Russian officials have removed their flag from the consulate building in the Wrzeszcz district and most staff have left, city authorities said Moscow has formally notified them that it will not surrender the property.

In a letter sent to Gdansk Mayor Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, the Russian ambassador said an administrative employee would remain in the building. City officials rejected the move and said they would pursue legal action.

“First, we will demand the building be surrendered, and then we will take the matter to court and to a bailiff,” city officials told Polish news service Onet.

The presence of a Russian employee prevents the city from entering or securing the building without a court ruling, effectively blocking the transfer of possession despite the closure order.

At the center of the dispute is a long-running disagreement over ownership of the properties at Batorego 13 and 15. Russian authorities argue the buildings are owed to Moscow as compensation for a former consulate site at Dlugie Ogrody, acquired by order of Tsar Peter I in the early eighteenth century and lost in 1941 after the outbreak of the German–Soviet war.

Gdansk officials reject that claim, saying land and mortgage registers list the Polish State Treasury as the legal owner. Vice-Mayor Emilia Lodzinska said Russia’s position “are inconsistent with the law and are not supported by applicable documents.” A formal legal response outlining the city’s position was sent to the Russian ambassador but has received no reply.

The dispute is further complicated by unpaid charges for use of the property. Since 2013, Poland’s Foreign Ministry has instructed the city to bill the Russian side for occupying the building, but city officials say the demands were ignored for years.

According to Gdansk authorities, unpaid fees for use of the property between 2013 and 2023 amount to about 5.5 million zloty, with an additional nearly 2 million zloty accruing since mid-2023. A Polish court has already ordered Russia to pay 400,000 zloty to the city, a ruling that remains unpaid and has been forwarded to a bailiff. A second lawsuit covering the remaining amount is still pending.

City officials compared Russia’s refusal to vacate the building to an unlawful occupation.

“It’s like having an empty apartment that squatters have moved into,” one official said. “You cannot evict them without a court order.”

Officials said the case could now stretch into a prolonged legal battle, reflecting the broader collapse of Polish–Russian relations since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the near-freeze of diplomatic ties between the two countries.