In response to a missile strike that killed two people in a town close to the Ukrainian border last week, Polish President Andrzej Duda claimed that he was duped by a prankster posing as French President Emmanuel Macron.
According to the Reuters news agency, Russian comedians Vovan and Lexus posted the lengthy call—which lasted more than seven minutes—on the internet. In it, Duda can be heard conversing in English with the caller as the caller tries to talk with a French accent.
In a tweet confirming the incident, Duda’s office stated that the president realized the conversation was taking place in an “unusual way” and realized it was probably a hoax.
“After the missile explosion in Przewodow, during the ongoing calls with heads of state and government, a person claiming to be French President Emmanuel Macron was connected.
“During the call, President Andrzej Duda realized from the unusual way the interlocutor conducted the conversation that there might have been an attempted hoax attempt and ended the conversation.”
According to the statement, the police have now started looking into how the callers were able to reach him using ordinary channels. Following the missile strike, Duda conducted a number of calls, which led to concerns about a substantial escalation between NATO partners and Russia.
This is the second time that Vovan and Lexus, two Russian comedians, have overcome Duda. They pretended to be Antonio Guterres when they called Duda in 2020, which raised concerns about call filtering and security in Duda’s office.
Vovan and Lexus are notorious for deceiving politicians and celebrities with hoax calls. President Macron, British artist Elton John, and former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson are just a few of the individuals they have previously targeted.