Terrorism among topics of NATO summit - Security Bureau head - News - National Security Bureau

24.05.2017

Terrorism among topics of NATO summit - Security Bureau head

The Thursday NATO summit in Brussels will refer to the problem of terrorism, allies are also expecting US confirmation of its direct engagement in European security, head of Poland's National Security Bureau (BBN) Pawel Soloch said Wednesday.

Soloch told a public television broadcaster that the summit will rather focus on terrorism than on refugee issues, but added the summit's starting point will be transatlantic ties. Soloch noted that all allies expect "the US to confirm its involvement in European security".

Referring to the question of building a European army, Soloch said that although European identity was surely worth discussing still there was an agreement among allies that "steps linked with European defence identity are to be complementary to NATO, not against NATO or an alternative to it".

Soloch asked about security in Europe and Poland in view of the Manchester attack, said that "Poland continues to be safer than other countries. So far (...) we have not dealt with such a development, an attack, but this of course does not relieve us from being vigilant", said the BBN head.

He added that there was a problem with the integration of people who found themselves in Europe as the attacker from Manchester was a British-born person, an Islamic fundamentalist. This, according to Soloch, indicates "that we are dealing with attackers born in Europe who stand up against countries in which they live". (PAP)