Madrid meeting shows unity of conservative parties towards Russia

Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish prime minister, has said that European conservative leaders, meeting in Madrid, have unequivocally condemned Russia's actions.

The international summit of European conservative and right-wing parties in the Spanish capital, hosted by the leader of Spain's rightist Vox party, Santiago Abascal, was held on Saturday under the motto 'Defend Europe.'

"Russia's actions have been unequivocally condemned in the final declaration adopted by today's meeting," Morawiecki said.

"Let me express my gratitude to our European partners, who together with us have pointed to the source of today's most significant threat to peace," Morawiecki said.

"I heard many words of support for our policies, for our effective protection of borders," the prime minister said, adding that the meeting had also emphasised the importance of the defence of sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, including Ukraine.

The Polish prime minister also said he had been attending meetings with many European politicians and parties to explain Poland's attitude towards Russia "as many politicians in Europe, who live several thousand kilometres from Russia, are not aware of a real threat and want to treat Putin as a rational and responsible partner."

"Unfortunately, such a stance on Russia is very common in Western Europe, irrespective of political affiliations, from the right to the left," Morawiecki stated.

Russia has already deployed around 100,000 troops on its border with Ukraine, prompting fears that it intends to invade its western neighbour.