President Andrzej Duda on EU and NATO - News - National Security Bureau

24.04.2016

President Andrzej Duda on EU and NATO

President Andrzej Duda has told PAP that in his opinion decision-making in the EU is weak and that this is a problem for Europe today.

According to the Polish head of state, the EU lacks solidarity regarding the understanding of the situation of Central European countries trying to catch up with rich western states.

The president stressed that today the EU needed more solidarity and decision-making. "The EU is strong because it is built of strong countries but at the same time it is weak when it comes to taking firm decisions. Today the EU should focus on solving the migration crisis," President Duda said, adding that the point was to remove its sources.

President Duda said that in his opinion the EU should be a union of nation states which develop economic cooperation, and a union which does not interfere in their sovereignty.

The president added that the EU was for him and for the majority of Poles a great value.

Asked about the outcome of a Dutch referendum in which most citizens came out against the EU-Ukraine association agreement, the Polish president said it was a piece of bad news for Ukraine and stressed that it was a sign of growing euroscepticism rather than of a negative attitude towards Ukraine.

Speaking about NATO and plans to increase the Polish armed forces, the president said the Alliance was obliged to help us but stressed that Poland should have a strong army which could be able to cope with threats.

According to the president, a bigger army "is an element of increasing the country's security potential."

"The best way to make Poles secure today - especially in the current geopolitical situation - is to cooperate with NATO partners and increase the Alliance's presence in our part of Europe, but (...) I believe it is also necessary in Poland to strengthen the potential of the Polish army," President Duda said.

"The alliance is obliged to help us, but we must have our own army which is efficient, strong and well equipped," the president said, adding that work designed to achieve this goal was under way.
 

Source: president.pl; PAP