Zbigniew Rau made the statement at a briefing in Bled, Slovenia, on Monday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Rau, who is also the current chairperson-in-office of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), took part in an international foreign-policy conference, the Bled Strategic Forum.
Poland’s top diplomat participated in a discussion panel entitled “How many Europes in Europe?.”
He was accompanied by the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Slovenia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, France’s Secretary of State for European Affairs Laurence Boone, Iceland’s Foreign Minister Þórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörð Gylfadóttir, as well as Portugal’s João Titterington Gomes Cravinho, Spain’s José Manuel Albares Bueno and Austria’s Alexander Schallenberg.
During the panel, Rau assessed that "In the European Union, we have risen up to the daunting challenge of assisting Ukraine in the defence of its independence."
‘We should support Ukraine with determination’
Speaking to reporters afterwards, Rau noted he disagreed with French President Emmanuel Macron's recent warning about “the end of abundance.”
According to the Polish foreign minister, there are more important values, jeopardised by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, such as “freedom, dignity, human rights, national independence, state sovereignty, territorial integrity.”
“Russia would like an end to all of these values,” he added.
Rau told reporters: “We in Poland… are not indifferent to abundance. However, priority must be given to the values that are being defended with huge determination and heroism by the Ukrainians.”
“It is with similar determination that we should support Ukraine, naturally also in terms of sanctions, which we also discussed during the panel,” Poland’s top diplomat said at the briefing in Bled.
He stressed the need "for unity among EU countries in the face of the Russian invasion of Ukraine" and "for joint security efforts."
Later on Monday, Rau held meetings with Çavuşoğlu and with Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz, the PAP news agency reported.
On Tuesday, Poland’s top diplomat begins a two-day visit to the Czech Republic.
Monday was day 187 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Source: PAP, wnp.pl