No Russian 'zone of influence' in Ukraine Polish president says

Poland rejects the claim that Ukraine is part of Russia's zone of influence and believes Kiev has every right to fully integrate into the EU and Nato, Andrzej Duda, the Polish president, has said.

Duda held talks with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, on Thursday and Friday. The two heads of state focused on the tense situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border, where Russia has amassed tens of thousands of troops, ramping up fears of a possible invasion.

"I told President Zelensky that Ukraine can count on support from our country," Duda said on Twitter after the talks.

"Poland rejects the concept of zones of influence and support Ukraine's full Euro-Atlantic integration," Duda continued.

Russia has demanded written guarantees from Nato that the it will not accept any new Eastern members and will remove its forces from countries that joined the alliance in 2004, such as the Baltic States, Bulgaria and Romania.