Poland expanding defences for common security says president

Poland is expanding its defensive arsenal, and plans to spend over 4 percent of its GDP on defence in 2023, Poland's president said in an interview for the French daily Le Figaro.

In the interview, published on Saturday evening on the presidential website, Andrzej Duda said that Poland's military upgrades were part of "building common security" in keeping with Nato's "one for all, all for one" principle.

"Poland is expanding its defensive potential. In 2023 we will channel more than 4 percent GDP to defence, this is twice as much as expected from Nato allies. We are building common security - one for all, all for one," Duda said.

Asked about Poland's relations with the US, Duda said they "extended beyond words," and as an example named the presence of nearly 10,000 US troops in Poland as part of reinforcements on the eastern Nato flank.

Asked if he could imagine a Russian attack on his country, Duda said an attack on Poland would be "an attack on Nato," and said he believed in a "prompt and decided response" if this happened.

Commenting on the possible outcome of the Russia-Ukraine war, Duda said Ukraine could lose it if it did not receive more military aid soon. He added that arms supplies should reach Ukraine within the next weeks if Russia was to be defeated, and warned that if Russian leader Vladimir Putin were to win the war, "there is no knowing where he might stop."

Duda also praised his countrymen for the large-scale aid they offered to Ukrainian refugees.

"The Poles have not forgotten what Russian occupation is, what a Russian invasion means and the conduct of Russian troops. Their arrival means death and brutality," Duda told Le Figaro.