Achi news desk-
Polish President Andrzej Duda says that while no decision has been made on whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of NATO’s expanded nuclear sharing program, his country is ready and willing to do so.
“I don’t know anything about such decisions, so I responsibly say that there are no such decisions in place, but we declare our willingness,” Duda told CTV’s Question Time host Vasi Kapelos in an exclusive interview that aired on Sunday.
Auntie spoke in Polish, through a translator.
According to NATO, the alliance’s nuclear-sharing arrangements ensure that all member states both share the risk, but also benefit from “collective protection,” by strategically hosting nuclear weapons in certain countries. The United States, the United Kingdom, and France are all nuclear-weapon states in their own right, while Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Turkey and Italy all host US-supplied nuclear weapons
All of NATO also shares decision-making responsibilities regarding nuclear missions and deterrence.
After Russia’s war in Ukraine passed the two-year mark, Duda said that if NATO decided collectively to bolster defenses on its eastern flank by having Poland host nuclear weapons, his country was ready.
“It’s not any kind of new information,” Duda said. “For many years, in fact, we have repeated that if NATO allies make such a decision to deploy within NATO or expand the nuclear sharing program to include Poland, then we are ready, because we understand that this is about strengthening the security of Europe.”
When asked if this is closer to happening, Duda said the alliance members have not reached a verdict.
“We raised this issue in talks with allies,” he said. “There are no decisions on this matter… I want to deny all the claims that some decisions were made on this matter, I did not participate in making decisions.”
Duda said there is no doubt that if Russian President Vladimir Putin succeeds in conquering Ukraine, he will continue the attack and invade other countries.
He repeated that Poland is “ready” to host nuclear weapons, “because we can see that Russia is dangerous again, that Russia is deploying its nuclear weapons.”
Putin warned last month that Russia was ready to deploy its nuclear arsenal.
“It is not the West that provokes Russia, it is not NATO that provokes Russia, on the contrary,” he added. “It is Russia that provokes the West.”
Duda said that NATO members are responding “exclusively” to Russia’s aggression.
In his interview, Duda also discussed Russia’s war in Ukraine and the risk of “insatiable” Russian imperialism, his relationship with former US President Donald Trump, the target of NATO’s defense spending, and his openness to buying Canadian liquefied natural gas, if it were on the market.
You can watch Duda’s full interview on CTV’s Question Period, Sunday at 11 a.m. ET, and in the video player at the top of this article.
With files from CTV’s The Question Season executive producer Stephanie Ha
