Polish PM Calls on EU Member States to Increase Defense Spending

Europe needs to take care of its own security rather than relying on the U.S. and spend more accordingly, Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, told the European Parliament on Wednesday.

Outlining Poland’s priorities after assuming the rotating EU presidency, Tusk addressed calls by the new U.S. president, Donald Trump, to raise defense spending.

Paraphrasing John F. Kennedy, Tusk said: “Don’t ask America what it can do for our own security; ask yourselves what we can do for our own security.”He added: “The party is over; the time of comfort is over,” Tusk told the assembly in Strasbourg in response to Trump’s invocation for Europe to take on more responsibility for its own security.

“Only an ally can wish another ally to get stronger,” the Polish prime minister said. “This is not what an opponent of Europe would say... Now it is up to us to act.

”He said Europe had no cause to fear Russia but needs instead to “believe again in our power.”

“The potential is a fact,” he said. “We are strong. We’re equal to the greatest powers of the world. The only thing we have to do is to believe in it.

”He went on to emphasize that Poland already spends close to 5% of its GDP on defense and urged other member states to follow suit, not only for their own security but for that of the continent as a whole.

Other Topics of Interest

European Leaders to Boost Support for Ukraine at London Summit

Defining Days Begin for Europe and Ukraine.

“Some people think it’s extravagant, or it is a brutal or malicious warning when we say that we should spend up to 5% of GDP on our security,” he told the parliament. “I would like to tell you that this is a time when Europe cannot afford to save on security.... If Europe is to survive, it needs to be armed.

”He said in politics weakness breeds contempt, but Europeans have no need to feel inferior.“Hold your heads high,” he said. “Europe was, is and will be great.”

Border Security

Tusk told MEPs that this focus on security needs to be extended to the bloc’s external borders.

“It is the greatest responsibility of any authority for a safe border and safe territory if democracy is to survive...” he said, going on to argue that “we are not capable of defending our European border and European territory.”

But, he said, this need not entail nationalism or right-wing rhetoric.

“I would like to tell you that you can tackle the problem of illegal migration and problems with internal security in Europe without nationalistic and xenophobic slogans,” Tusk said, calling for EU migration management to be based on democratic values, individual freedoms, and respect for human and minority rights.

“I would like all of those who profess those values to show their power and therefore, when we need to defend our borders and our security, democracy needs to become stronger,” Tusk said.

Energy security

Tusk also addressed the issue of energy, arguing that energy security and dependence on Russian hydrocarbons was one of the reasons underpinning the current war in Ukraine. He also said there could be no return to business as usual with Moscow once the war is over.

“This dependency needs to be over forever,” he said, going on to broach the topic of energy prices, highlighting that energy costs in the EU are three times that of China or the U.S. He said this required action, but that the need for affordable energy has to be balanced with environmental and climate protection.

He said the bloc needs to “have the courage to change those rules that might result in excessively high, prohibitively high energy prices,” mentioning in this regard the Emissions Trading System, which he said needs to be replaced swiftly.