Shared threats, shared interests

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Donald Tusk took part in the Eastern Flank Summit organised by the Finnish Prime Minister.

“Shared threat, shared opportunities, shared projects, we border a very demanding neighbouring country, and we truly understand each other, I would even say perfectly. There are no conflicts of interest here when it comes to international affairs,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said at a press conference with the leaders of the states and governments taking part in the summit.

Finnish authorities invited to Helsinki representatives of seven EU Member States bordering Russia: the prime ministers of Poland, Sweden and Bulgaria; the President of Romania; and the leaders of the Baltic states - Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. The work of the Eastern Flank Group will be co-chaired by Poland together with Finland. This reflects recognition of Poland’s particular role in the region.

“Poland is definitely the largest country here. We also started work on our eastern border the earliest, so we have the most experience, the most resources, and we are spending the most money,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.

The summit focused on strengthening the security of the EU’s eastern flank together with regional partners. It is a response to the challenges Europe faces today.

Permanent defence cooperation and EU support

Heads of government decided that cooperation will also take place at lower levels - including defence ministers and advisers - and will be permanent in nature.

“Poland makes a major contribution to Europe’s security. We protect the eastern border of the European Union with Russia and Belarus. In doing so, we use European Union instruments,” the Prime Minister recalled.

European funds can be used even more effectively—however, this requires joint political pressure so that the needs of our part of Europe are also understood by the western EU countries. One example of Poland’s success is the East Shield (Tarcza Wschód) - today recognised as a priority project for all of Europe. According to current assumptions, Poland will invest nearly PLN 10 billion in the East Shield. These will also include European funds coming from various sources.

“From Poland’s point of view, the fact that all of Europe finances the protection of the Polish border - because it is a European border—was absolutely crucial. I can say that month by month we will be increasingly safe when it comes to border protection,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced.

Russia does not act only militarily, but also through sabotage, disinformation and destabilising societies. Examples include disruptions to navigation systems, violations of airspace, or attacks on infrastructure.

“Our goal is to build the most modern, effective anti-drone wall, saturated with technology, so that the threat from Russia is not as burdensome as it is at the moment,” the Prime Minister said.

The war against Ukraine shows that Moscow wants to expand its influence and undermine the stability of the region.

The Eastern Flank Summit concluded with all leaders signing a joint declaration. The states are sending a clear signal that the security of the eastern flank is Europe’s shared responsibility. They also commit to jointly developing the Eastern Flank Guard, including a European drone-defence initiative, in close coordination with NATO.