Andrzej Duda made the declaration at a summit of the Bucharest Nine (B9) group of countries in Bucharest, Romania, on Friday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The B9 brings together NATO members lying on the pact’s eastern flank: Poland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovakia.
Friday’s B9 summit was held in preparation for the NATO summit, which will take place in Madrid, Spain, later this month.
Call for more NATO troops on eastern flank
After meeting with his counterparts from B9 countries, the Polish president told reporters: “We want the number of NATO soldiers stationed in the eastern flank countries to rise significantly.”
He added that the alliance’s Enhanced Forward Presence “should be extended to more eastern flank states, such as Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia.”
“We also want this scheme to be turned into Enhanced Forward Defence,” the president stated.
“In other words, for the number of NATO troops stationed in the different eastern flank countries to be significantly raised,” he added.
“We also hope that the United States will boost its presence in our part of Europe,” the president said.
Collective defence
Duda also pledged: “We are ready to support every NATO member that comes under threat.”
“Every country can count on us,” he added.
Supporting Ukraine, stopping Russia
The Polish president stressed that NATO must above all “support Ukraine and strengthen its defences,” as well as “develop a strategy to contain Putin’s imperialism.”
The B9 leaders on Friday adopted a joint declaration, condemning Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and reiterating their commitment to defend “every inch of NATO territory.”
Friday was day 107 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Source: IAR, PAP, tvpparlament.pl, prezydent.pl
Click on the audio player above for a report by Radio Poland's Michał Owczarek.