Poland faces threat only from east, defence minister tells president
Poland is threatened only by Russia and its allies, Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz has said in response to comments made by the Polish president.
At Saturday's ceremony marking the 107th anniversary of the Greater Poland Uprising, President Karol Nawrocki said Poland must remain ready to defend its western border with Germany.
On Sunday, Kosiniak-Kamysz was asked by reporters to comment on Nawrocki's statement.
He replied that he understood the president's words as referring not to the future, but to history and the past, when Poland had been threatened from both the East and the West.
"We have a unique situation in our history, now the threat comes from the east, from the Russian Federation and its allies, like Belarus," Kosiniak-Kamysz said.
"This threat doesn't come from our allies. Together with the Federal Republic of Germany, we are in the North Atlantic Alliance and the European Union. This is perhaps the most important change in Poland's history, changing the entire defence perspective," he added.
He further argued that until recently, German Patriot batteries were stationed in Jasionka near Rzeszow, eastern Poland, and that currently German Eurofighter jets are stationed in northern Malbork, "defending the Polish sky."
According to Kosiniak-Kamysz, in the coming year 2026, Poland should be united in building its security against threats from the East, and strengthening its relations with the West, especially in the Baltic Sea basin.
"The Federal Republic of Germany is an important element of cooperation," he concluded.
Earlier, Nawrocki's reference to Poland’s readiness to defend its western border drew criticism from Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
"President Nawrocki once again pointed to the West as the main threat to Poland," Tusk wrote on X on Sunday. "This is the essence of the conflict between the anti-European bloc ... and our coalition - a deadly serious dispute about our values, security, and sovereignty: East or West." (PAP)
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