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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, has called on Europe to “join and win the arms race” with Russia if it wants to avoid a wider, large-scale conflict on the continent.
Tusk was speaking ahead of today’s summit of EU leaders in Brussels to discuss the situation in Ukraine and bolstering Europe’s defences. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was also in attendance.
💬 Premier @DonaldTusk 👇
Nie ulega wątpliwości, że wojna w Ukrainie, nowe podejście administracji amerykańskiej do Europy oraz przede wszystkim rozpoczęty przez Rosję wyścig zbrojeń, stawia przed nami nowe wyzwania. Europa musi wygrać ten wyścig zbrojeń. pic.twitter.com/ikSGZJPVED
— Kancelaria Premiera (@PremierRP) March 6, 2025
“There is no doubt that the war in Ukraine, the new approach of the American administration to Europe, and the arms race started by Russia pose completely new challenges to us,” Tusk told the media when arriving at the summit.
“Europe must join this arms race and win it,” he added. “I am convinced that Russia will lose this arms race – just as the Soviet Union lost a similar arms race 40 years ago. And this [the new arms race] is a similar method to avoid a wider, large-scale conflict.”
Tusk said that he believes Europe is now “ready” to meet the challenge to “arm ourselves faster, smarter and more effectively than Russia”. This week, the European Commission proposed borrowing €150 billion to fund a rearmament drive by member states.
“There are no grounds for facile optimism, but I am convinced that this is a turning point at which Europe has understood what responsibility rests upon it,” he added. “This is an essential condition for being safe.”
The Polish prime minister said that among the issues he would discuss with his fellow European leaders today were bolstering the presence of European and NATO troops along their borders with Russia and its ally Belarus.
Tusk also said that the proposed idea for France to expand its nuclear deterrence capabilities is “worth considering”. And he noted that the EU may have to “look for solutions that will ensure we achieve our goals” if Hungary, which is friendly with Russia, opposes rearmament measures.
But the Polish prime minister emphasised that “maintaining the alliance with the United States must be our absolute priority”. He argued that bolstering Europe’s defence spending would in fact help achieve that, given that “America is now a slightly more demanding partner.”
Europe must start “believing we are a global power” and strive for “defence independence”, said @donaldtusk ahead of today's London summit.
He pledged Poland's support for Ukraine but called for maintaining "the closest possible alliance" with the US https://t.co/3K37kr2GgR
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) March 2, 2025
Tusk’s remarks today echo those he has made in recent months regarding the need for Europe to step up defence spending. Last week, ahead of another summit in London, Tusk called on Europe to start “believing that we are a global power” and to attain “defence independence”.
Since coming to power in December 2023, Tusk’s government has continued the increase in defence spending begun under its predecessor. This year, Poland will spend an estimated 4.7% of GDP on defence, by far the highest relative figure in NATO.
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Main image credit: KPRM/Flickr (under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
