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Polish FM: Much better to spend the money on protecting Ukraine than on then having to rebuild it

Poland’s FM Sikorski says it’s better to fund protecting Ukraine’s infrastructure now rather than having to rebuild it after the war; and he supports Macron’s strategic ambiguity on deploying NATO troops in Ukraine.

byYuri Zoria

05/05/2024

2 minute read

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski in his office in Warsaw. Photo: Daniel Biskup/BILD

Polish FM: Much better to spend the money on protecting Ukraine than on then having to rebuild it

In his remarks to BBC World, Poland’s Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski emphasized that his country is the essential hub for helping Ukraine and is dedicating the largest proportion of its GDP to defense spending within NATO at 4%, which may increase it further next year, PAP and Polskie Radio reported.

Sikorski thanked President Biden and the US Congress for finally approving supplemental military aid for Ukraine last month, and stressed Ukraine’s desperate need for anti-aircraft missiles to protect its industry, power stations and infrastructure, saying:

“I think it’s much better to spend the money on protecting Ukraine than on then having to rebuild it.”

Macron’s strategic ambiguity

Asked about the extent of the threat Russia poses to Poland, the head of Polish diplomacy stated that he does not believe President Vladimir Putin would be reckless enough to attack a NATO member state. However, he pointed out that Putin had proved reckless enough to attack Ukraine and is now considered a war criminal.

Referring to Macron’s idea that nothing should be ruled out when it comes to the Western troops’ deployment in Ukraine, Sikorski said it is right to put Putin in a situation where he is not sure what the West will do, instead of ruling out certain eventualities in advance.

Asked if Poland would consider sending its troops, he said:

“We will not expose our cards. Let’s let President Putin think about what we will do.”

The head of Polish diplomacy stated that the war would only end when Putin realizes that the human and financial costs of continuing it outweigh his objectives. However, he noted that it might take some time for Putin to reach this understanding.

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