Marcin Przydacz set out the Polish stance in parliament on Thursday, state news agency PAP reported.
New strategic concept for NATO
Answering questions from MPs, Przydacz said that the Madrid summit would focus on endorsing NATO’s new strategic concept. The current one has been in place since 2010.
“We are living in a totally different situation today and it is vital that we change this document, adapting it to current challenges,” he told lawmakers.
He added that Poland wanted the new strategic blueprint to reflect “the radical change in Euro-Atlantic security caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.”
Strengthening NATO’s eastern flank
Przydacz told MPs: “We expect that the new concept will name collective defence as an absolutely key task of the alliance. And so it will be necessary to strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defence capabilities for the long term, especially on the alliance’s eastern flank.”
Earlier this month, the Polish government said it would push for more NATO troops on the eastern flank, to be stationed in permanent bases.
Przydacz on Thursday added that for Poland, boosting American presence on NATO’s eastern edge was of key importance.
He said the Madrid summit would also emphasise the need to provide further support to war-torn Ukraine.
The Madrid get-together, scheduled for June 28-30, will feature heads of state and government from NATO’s 30 member countries, as well as representatives from Australia, Finland, Georgia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Sweden, the European Council and the European Commission, officials told reporters.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to address the summit via video link.
Thursday was day 120 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, nato.int