President Andrzej Duda, together with President Emmanuel Macron of the French Republic and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Federal Republic of Germany, attended the Weimar Triangle Summit in Paris. The meeting was aimed at discussing common interests and actions that could contribute to Ukraine’s victory in the war against Russia.
“We are united with France and Germany by a common interest today. Russia cannot win this war.”, Duda said.
President Duda stressed that it was crucial for Europe’s security to stop Russian imperialism. In this context, he referred to the history of the overthrow of communism in Poland and its political joining of the Western community. He noted that the Ukrainians are now striving to do the same and we should support them in achieving this goal. This topic was one of the main points of discussion during the meeting.
President Duda also mentioned a recent conversation with the President of Ukraine, Vlodimir Zelenski, who gave an update on the situation on the frontline. He stressed the importance of ousting the Russian aggressor from all occupied territories and pointed out the importance of humanitarian support and cooperation within the so-called ‘coalition aircraft’.
“We need a peace that will be lasting and give us a truly peaceful life.”, President added.
The main objective now is to achieve lasting peace in Europe. President Duda stressed that it is about a peace that will guarantee a peaceful life and not a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine. In this context, he announced talks on strengthening NATO’s presence on the eastern flank, both in terms of numbers of troops and strategic plans and infrastructure. He also set a minimum level of defence spending across all NATO countries of 2% of GDP.
President Duda also pledged to report to President Macron and Chancellor Scholz on the meeting of the Bucharest Nine recently held in Bratislava. At this conference, NATO support for Ukraine was discussed. President Duda drew attention to the threat of re-nuclearisation of Belarus, which he intends to discuss at the Paris summit.
During the press conference, a question about the ‘Migration Pact’ was raised. President Duda stressed that Poland had welcomed those who needed help and that Poles had opened their homes to refugees. However, in the context of the future reception of refugees from Ukraine, he expressed scepticism about accepting migrants from other directions. He concluded that despite Poland’s assistance, the country had not received any particular support from the European Union institutions and hopefully would not be punished for its stance.
Prior to his meeting with the media, President Duda also had a ‘one-on-one’ conversation with President Macron at the Élysée Palace, where they presumably discussed current issues and priorities concerning the region.