Andrzej Duda made the statement at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The president was taking part in a panel discussion entitled Restoring Security and Peace, held at the Polish House venue in the Swiss ski resort.
Duda told the audience that last week he travelled to Ukraine to meet with his counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky.
He said, as quoted by PAP: “I know very well that Ukraine needs weapons and that it demands weapons, weapons, weapons. Weapons are crucial now because this war is really very difficult, this is not the end of the war.”
The Polish head of state added: “Russia has not been defeated. They are still Russians. They are still very strong. There are a lot of Russian soldiers on the frontline. And we are afraid that now they are preparing a new offensive.”
‘Ukraine needs modern tanks and weapons’
The Polish president said: “That’s why new equipment, new military resources must be sent to Ukraine.”
He added that “Ukraine above all needs modern tanks and missiles … so that it can defend itself, but first and foremost, to stop the Russian offensive.”
Duda said that security assistance provided so far “is definitely insufficient” to defend Ukraine.
‘The situation is becoming difficult’
He urged: “More of our assistance, more of our resources, more of our equipment is necessary, much more, because the situation is becoming difficult.”
The president also said that "Poland, as Ukraine’s neighbour, understood the aspirations of the Ukrainian people."
He stated, as quoted by PAP: "We understand Ukrainians and we know that they truly want to be part of the Western political community, part of Western society, to be members of this society and therefore to be participants and inhabitants of the Western security zone, as well as members of the European Union and members of NATO."
Duda added: “However, first and foremost, they need to survive, they need to live, they need to keep their country, to hold on to it, to keep their sovereignty, to remain free. And we must help them achieve this."
NATO security guarantees for Ukraine
During the discussion, the Polish president supported Zelensky’s recent call for NATO to offer security guarantees to Ukraine at an upcoming summit in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Addressing NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, who also took part in the panel, Duda said: "Mr. Secretary-General, I will be very grateful for this."
Ukraine's president addressed the event via video link from Kyiv.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska was in the audience for the panel, officials said.
The 2023 World Economic Forum, attended by decision makers including Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin, runs until Friday.
Wednesday is day 329 of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, niezalezna.pl