Polish President: NATO Summit
Is A Success For Poland
And The Alliance
The NATO summit in Warsaw had been a success for the North Atlantic Alliance and Poland; the summit conclusions were good for both our country, and NATO, President Andrzej Duda said on Saturday. Key thing for Poland is the enhanced presence of NATO forces on our territory.
(10 July 2016) “These negotiations have taken very long, and we can say today that the summit has been a success for NATO, and for Poland as a member of the North Atlantic Alliance,” the president told a press briefing on Saturday summing up the meeting of NATO country leaders.
He added that the participants had held “long discussions, but the final conclusions are good for both the Alliance, and Poland.” Mr Duda said he was happy it had been possible to achieve the goals that had been set at the beginning by him as president, and by his collaborators: Krzysztof Szczerski, minister at the Presidential Chancellery, and Paweł Soloch, head of the National Security Bureau.
According to the president, the summit provides a “real response” to the changing security environment in Europe, and adapts NATO’s actions to these changes. “What it means for us Poles and for Poland immediately is an enhanced presence of NATO forces on our territory,” noted Mr Duda.
He explained that according to the summit decisions, Poland would have a “real allied force” on its territory, capable of protecting it any time a threat emerges. In his view, this represents a “tangible benefit” for Poland gained from the summit.
The president emphasized that declarations had been made during the summit about the presence of allied troops in Poland. He recalled that Great Britain had undertaken to send 150 service personnel to our country; troops deployment had also been mentioned by the Romanian president.
“I am very grateful for these declarations. Allied units are being formed right now so that next year, the Alliance’s objectives regarding enhanced forward presence in the Baltic states and Poland can be accomplished,” said President Duda.
Mr. Duda stressed that the Warsaw NATO summit had clearly shown the unity, cohesion and solidarity of the Alliance. “The summit concluded with very important decisions, some even say – historic ones,” said the president.
He added that, as planned from the outset, the summit had a comprehensive character. “We discussed all the issues relating to the North Atlantic Alliance in terms of ensuring our security,” said Mr Duda. He noted that the summit’s decisions concerned not only NATO member countries, but also the situation on “the Alliance’s southern borders.” He added that the summit talks also focused on Ukraine and NATO support for this country.
“Decisions have been made on all these issues, which is a great satisfaction not only for me, but for all the heads of state and government present at the summit”, stressed the president.
The president thanked all the leaders who came to Warsaw; he addressed special words of gratitude to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and his collaborators.
He added that in his opinion the summit has been successful in every respect.
As he said, he received congratulations on the summit’s organisation from many leaders. The president thanked all those involved in the preparation and organisation of the event; he also thanked the inhabitants of Warsaw for their tolerance and understanding for the inconvenience associated with the summit.
According to the president, Poland and its capital made a very good impression during the summit as a country that is able to organise “a great international event, ensure security, effective transport” and “very modern and attractive working conditions.”
On Friday, NATO leaders decided to strengthen the Alliance’s eastern flank by deploying four battalions of around 1,000 soldiers in Poland and the Baltic states.
The summit also reaffirmed its decision to strengthen NATO presence in the south-eastern part of the Alliance, announced preliminary operational readiness of the missile defence shield, and recognised cyberspace as a new operational domain.
On Saturday, NATO confirmed its support for Ukraine, its sovereignty and territorial integrity. It was also decided that the Alliance will provide the coalition against the so-called Islamic State with airborne early warning and control system aircraft (AWACS), and will also launch a new mission in the Mediterranean.
Source: PAP
