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Poland urges NATO allies to tackle Russian disinformation in Eastern Europe

04.12.2024 14:00
Poland expects NATO to tackle Russia's information warfare against Georgia, Moldova and Romania, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said on Wednesday after a meeting of alliance foreign ministers.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski attends a  meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Dec. 3, 2024.
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski attends a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Dec. 3, 2024.EPA/OLIVIER HOSLET

He emphasized the importance of such efforts ahead of Poland's presidential elections.

"There is almost a consensus that Ukraine should be supported for at least another year to convince the Russian president that any potential peace must be on just terms," Sikorski told the media at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

He added that the situation is not yet mature for Russia to agree to a fair peace.

Sikorski outlined Poland's expectations for a NATO summit scheduled for June 2025 in The Hague.

"Poland counts on filling operational plans with real capabilities and updating and strengthening missile and air defense," he said.

He also stressed the need to address hybrid threats, including acts of sabotage occurring within NATO countries and Russia's information warfare against countries such as Georgia, Moldova and Romania.

"This is particularly important in the context of our presidential elections," Sikorski added.

Concerns over Russian, Chinese destabilization efforts

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said Russia and China are attempting to destabilize alliance members through sabotage, cyberattacks and using energy as a weapon.

"We will discuss how to defend more effectively against these attacks, including by strengthening intelligence cooperation," Rutte told reporters ahead of the ministers' meeting.

He emphasized that NATO countries must protect their critical infrastructure and support Ukraine in this regard. The topic of assistance to Ukraine was discussed during a dinner on Tuesday with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.

"We agreed that an absolute priority is to provide Ukraine with energy sources, especially since Russia wants to exploit the coming winter by intensifying attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure," Rutte said.

Calls for increased defense spending

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy noted Russia's involvement in various global conflicts, stating: "We see one country that has a hand in this: Russia."

He urged NATO members to take defense spending seriously, highlighting that the UK already allocates over 2.5 percent of its GDP to defense.

"We live in dangerous times," Lammy added.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said Europe has experienced "500 suspicious incidents" this year, with at least 100 attributable to Russia, including hybrid attacks, espionage and influence operations. "We must send a strong signal to Moscow that we will not tolerate this," he told journalists.

The escalation of hostile actions by Russia, including acts of sabotage, cyberattacks and energy blackmail against NATO countries, were among the key topics discussed by NATO foreign ministers during their two-day meeting in Brussels.

(jh/gs)

Source: IAR, PAP