Nato will respond to any attack on Poland says Pentagon chief

The US defence secretary has said that Nato will stand by Poland if Russia decides to attack.

Addressing the House Committee on Armed Services, Lloyd Austin said that Nato would respond as a coalition and added that the US had plans for such a possibility. He made the statement when asked about the possible consequences of a Russian attack on "missile installations" either in Poland or in another country in the region.

Austin said that it was always dangerous to speak about hypotethical scenarios but admitted that, in this case, this was a very serious matter. If Russia decides to attack any nation that's a Nato member, that's a game-changer, he said.

The defence secretary stated that Nato would respond as a coalition, and in accordance with Article 5 of the Nato treaty.

Austin added that the alliance had at its disposal the means necessary to respond to a Russian attack but said that, in his opinion, Russia did not want to take on the Nato alliance.