Notorious Russian pranksters trick Polish President by claiming to be UN secretary general

A pair of notorious Russian pranksters fooled Poland's president Andrzej Duda by posing as U.N. secretary-general General Antonio Guterres.

The duo called as Vovan and Lexus, isknown for posing as foreign officials in prank calls with European politicians have hoodwinked Duda after they were able to reach his telephone.

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Vovan, whose real name is Vladimir Kuznetsov, posted a recording of the 11-minute call on YouTube. Duda's office confirmed that it was authentic.

The imposters referred to him as ''Your Excellency''. Initially, they congratulated him on eking out a second presidential term but took the president to task for his hostile campaign comments about the LGBT community, drawing Duda's assurance that he has ''huge respect for every human being.''

At various points in the conversation, conducted in English, Duda sounds surprised at the line of questioning. But soon rendered him speechless with questions about Ukraine, Russia, and his re-election on Sunday.

He also rejected a provocative suggestion that Poland would seek to claim back the Ukrainian city of Lviv, which was part of Poland before World War II.

In a tweet, Duda said he realized ''something was not right''during the conversation and was suspicious because the real Antonio Guterres does not pronounce the name of Polish vodka brand Zubrowka as well as the caller did.
But he agreed that the ''voice was very similar''.

Polish state security is investigating how the prankster got through to the president and whether Russia's secret services were involved.

The Internal Security Agency said in a statement the call had been authorized by an official with Poland's mission to the United Nations and that his actions are under investigation.

Vovan and Lexus have previously embarrassed a host of world leaders and celebrities, including Prince Harry, Boris Johnson, Elton John and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Russia and Poland's relationship is tense these days, especially over Poland's support for Ukraine's drive for closer links with the European Union.

Duda also rejected a provocative suggestion that Poland would seek to claim back the Ukrainian city of Lviv, which was part of Poland before World War II.

“No! No! This is Ukraine,” Duda emphasized, adding that no political group in Poland harbored such an idea.

The president also said that Poland has a “discussion about history” with Russian President Vladimir Putin about World War II and the Soviet “occupation” of Poland after the war.