Poland is prepared to host nuclear arms if NATO decides to deploy them in response to Russia reinforcing its armaments in Belarus and Kaliningrad, according to President Andrzej Duda.
In an interview published by the Fakt daily on Monday, Duda stated, “If our allies decide to deploy nuclear arms on our territory as part of nuclear sharing to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank, we are ready to do so.”
Duda, who recently visited New York for meetings at the UN and discussions on the Ukraine war with former US president Donald Trump, reiterated Poland’s stance on nuclear cooperation with the United States.
“Discussions about nuclear cooperation between Poland and the United States have been ongoing for some time,” he said. “I have already talked about this several times. I must admit that when asked about it, I declared our readiness.”
Poland, as a NATO member and a strong supporter of Ukraine, shares borders with Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave and Belarus, an ally of Moscow. Duda emphasized Russia’s increasing militarization of Kaliningrad and its recent relocation of nuclear weapons to Belarus.
“Russia is increasingly militarizing Kaliningrad. Recently it has been relocating its nuclear weapons to Belarus,” Duda stated.
In June 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed the deployment of tactical nuclear arms to Belarus, which borders Ukraine and Poland.
At the last NATO summit in Vilnius, allies pledged to “take all necessary steps to ensure the credibility, effectiveness, safety, and security of the nuclear deterrent mission.”
