Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said he would attend the summit of Baltic States to argue for the European Union members of Baltic area to be ready to lead the bloc in defence capacity and changes needed to make Europe’s economy competitive.
The summit, hosted by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, will receive heads of government from the Nordic and Baltic countries at his official summer home, in Harpsund, over November 27 -28.
Denmark, Finland and the three Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, will also attend. The Polish PM was quick to state that was a natural alliance because these countries shared the same view on the challenges facing Europe as a result of Russian aggression in Ukraine.
Tusk told reporters before leaving for the meeting that “for many months, Poland has been searching for a formula that brings together countries with clear and very similar, if not identical, positions regarding transatlantic relations, NATO, Ukraine, regional security, and policies toward Russia”.
He also noted the alignment of the Baltic region countries in their policies, stating: “It’s fortunate that the Baltic States have very similar policies, which should become the policies of the entire European Union and NATO.”
Tusk said he wanted Poland’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU, starting in January 2025 to“awaken European ambitions,” asserting that “there is no reason for Europe to have any inferiority complexes toward anyone today”.
He said he believed there was a need for Europe to prepare for being independent of the US on security matters and for the Baltic region countries to lead the way regarding Russia and security matters.
“We cannot predict how US policy will evolve in the coming months — of course, we must nurture relations with the United States — but Europe must become independent. The era of fear and uncertainty toward Russia must end,” Tusk said.
He added that a united Europe would render Russia a “technological, financial and economic dwarf” by comparison. “If Europe is divided, Russia poses a threat to each country individually,” Tusk said.
The Polish PM warned it would be a mistake for Europe to decide that, should the US reduce or stop its support for Ukraine, it would do likewise. “It would need to do the opposite [support Ukraine more] as our survival depends on Ukraine’s,” he said.
Tusk also said that Europe should “awake” economically and deal with “barriers such as over-regulation and sometimes naive ambitions on protecting the planet, which lead us into becoming uncompetitive”.
“We have to start with energy, because European energy prices cannot be 2-3 times those in the US and China or we’ll have no chance of being competitive,” he insisted.
While Tusk’s views on Ukraine and Russia are similar to those of Poland’s President Andrzej Duda, the two most senior officials clearly do not agree on the approach the country and the EU should take towards the upcoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump.
Duda has made great efforts to cultivate contacts with Trump and has gone on record as saying that Poland’s and Europe’s security was closely tied with that of the US.
He has also criticised what he called ideas of “European strategic autonomy” as expressed in the past by French President Emmanuel Macron.
