Poland, Lithuania ready for joint reaction to Russia, Nawrocki says
Polish President Karol Nawrocki said after a meeting with his Lithuanian counterpart, Gitanas Nauseda, that Warsaw and Vilnius are able to jointly react to the hybrid war waged against the West by Russia.
Nawrocki arrived in Vilnius on Monday for one of his first foreign visits since he took office on August 6. In the morning, he held talks with Nauseda.
At a press conference following the meeting, Nawrocki said both Poland and Lithuania are affected by threats from Russia.
"We're not only concerned, since of course we know the spirit of the Russian Federation, but we can also jointly react to that, and this was the subject of our meeting: joint reactions of our countries in the face of the hybrid war that is raging close to our borders," Nawrocki said.
Warsaw and Vilnius have accused Russia and Belarus of instigating a migration crisis on their borders by inviting tens of thousands of mostly Middle Eastern and African migrants and encouraging them to breach Polish and Lithuanian borders in a bid to destabilise Europe. The two NATO members have also accused Moscow of organising provocations, including espionage, arson and jamming GPS signals.
Nawrocki praised Lithuania as a trusted ally of Poland, the EU and NATO, underlining the fact that he had included Vilnius among the first capitals he wanted to visit as Poland's new head of state.
He added the talks with Nauseda had also concerned further cooperation, both bilateral and within NATO and the EU.
Nauseda said he and Nawrocki also discussed support for Ukraine, both in military and political terms, and increasing sanctions on Russia and Belarus.
Nawrocki, who met with US President Donald Trump in Washington last week, confirmed to reporters that he and Trump had discussed the presence of US troops in Lithuania.
"Due to its economic, financial, demographic, but also military potential, Poland feels responsible for entire regions of Central Europe," he said. "So during my conversation with President Trump, this topic and the issue of the Baltic states and Lithuania came up."
Nawrocki added that Trump's declaration to maintain and possibly increase the number of American soldiers in Poland has a positive impact on the security of the entire region.
Nauseda said he was pleased with Trump's declaration on military presence in Poland, but expressed the hope that the whole region "will receive America's attention."(PAP)
jd/mf
