Polish president proposes talks with Georgia, Ukraine during next NATO summit

Polish President Andrzej Duda called for the NATO-Georgia and NATO-Ukraine meetings in the framework of the next Alliance summit on Monday at a briefing with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. 

Duda called Ukraine and Georgia “reliable NATO allies,” noting “we must show that we are not abandoning them to their fate.” 

I believe that we should hold a meeting at the level of Georgia-NATO heads of state, as well as hold a meeting in the NATO-Ukraine format to show our solidarity with these countries,” president Duda said. 

The upcoming NATO summit will be held in June 2022. 

• Georgian, Polish presidents express solidarity with Ukraine

In the briefing, coming on the backdrop of tensions between NATO and Russia over Ukraine, Stoltenberg emphasised the importance of respecting sovereign decisions, adding “we must not return to an age of spheres of influence, where the big powers can tell others what they can or cannot do.”

NATO respects every country’s decision to be part of an alliance or not. Our Open Door policy has been a historic success, spreading freedom and security across Europe,” Stoltenberg said. 

The Polish president along with his Georgian counterpart Salome Zurabishvili expressed solidarity with Ukraine on February 4 during his transit visit to Georgia. 

Russia began the military build-up at Ukraine’s border last year, amassing more than 100,000 troops.