President Andrzej Duda welcomed Marek Rutti, the Secretary-General of NATO, at the Presidential Palace during an official visit to Poland. Rutti had already spoken with Prime Minister Donald Tusk earlier in the day, outlining the agenda of the talks and reaffirming NATO’s commitment to European security.
As announced by the President’s Chancellery, the discussions between Duda and the NATO chief would include, among other topics, a request by the president to discuss lifting defense spending in NATO member states to three percent of GDP ahead of the upcoming alliance summit.
At the start of March, after meeting Rutt at NATO’s Brussels headquarters, Duda said he had submitted a formal written request to be discussed at the next summit in The Hague regarding an immediate increase in defense spending by NATO members to three percent of GDP.
Safety interviews
Earlier, Mark Rutte met with Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The conversations centered on the current security climate in Europe, including military and hybrid threats from Russia, and NATO’s role as a cornerstone of Euro-Atlantic security. The discussions also covered ongoing efforts to deter Russian aggression toward Ukraine and the paths forward for that confrontation.
Rutte is scheduled to meet Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs Radosław Sikorski. Kosiniak-Kamysz described talks that included defense support for other member states and potential logistics arrangements, including a logistics hub in Jasionka near Rzeszów.
At 16:15, Rutte is set to deliver a lecture titled Stronger NATO, dedication to Euro-Atlantic Safety at Warsaw’s SGH campus.
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– Prime Minister Donald Tusk met NATO’s Marek Rutt and thanked him for clear backing and interest in the East Shield initiative.
– Mateusz Morawiecki described the East Shield as an established concept and warned that the government’s stance could wobble if geopolitics grew more naive in the fall.
– Ukraine’s protection under Article 5 of NATO remains an open question, with Witkoff noting Kyiv should hold presidential elections as planned.
– Some European observers question NATO’s reliance on American forces, as British media discuss potential shifts in the alliance’s strategic commitments.