Warsaw -Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has declared that the war in Ukraine is not only Ukraine’s fight but also the war of the West. Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum , he said the main task for European Union leaders is to make their people understand the threat allegedly posed by Russia.
Poland has been one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters in its conflict with Moscow, with Tusk taking a firm stance. Earlier this month, he criticized growing “antipathy” toward Ukraine among Poles, blaming Russian influence, and urged Polish politicians to counter this trend.
On Monday, Tusk stressed that “the biggest and most important task for European leaders today is to make Western societies aware” that the war in Ukraine is the most serious challenge of the 21st century.
“This war is also our war,” he said, calling it a matter of “fundamental interest” for the West. He warned that a Ukrainian defeat would impact the entire Western world, from Poland to the United States. He urged unity within the EU and NATO, saying solidarity was needed to “defeat” Russia.
Tusk also highlighted plans for large-scale modernization of the Polish army and called for mobilization of both governments and societies across Europe. Earlier this month, Warsaw accused Moscow of sending drones into its airspace, a claim Russia has denied.
Russia, on the other hand, has described the Ukraine conflict as a proxy war by the West. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently said that the crisis was provoked by the EU and NATO and used to wage “an actual war” against Moscow.
At the UN General Assembly on Saturday, Lavrov dismissed Western claims that Russia plans to attack NATO in the future, stating, “Russia has not had such intentions.” He added that Moscow had repeatedly invited NATO to agree on “legally binding security guarantees” in Europe, but those proposals were ignored.
NP