Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk has called for caution on new financial pledges for Ukraine, citing the need to focus on protecting the EU’s eastern border.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk during a press conference in Warsaw on Friday.PAP/Leszek Szymański
Speaking ahead of an upcoming NATO summit, Tusk said he had asked his deputies Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski to be precise when presenting the government’s position, as President Karol Nawrocki is set to represent Poland at the meeting.
The Polish PM argued the gathering would „finalise” Europe’s responsibility for defence readiness and funding, adding that Poland was a model example for the alliance in this area.
The 2026 NATO summit will be held in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7–8.
Tusk stressed that Warsaw’s position on supporting Ukraine had not changed, but warned against making further pledges.
„Ukraine needs financial support, but Poland must protect the eastern border of the European Union,” he said.
Tusk noted that his country carries a significant burden in securing the EU’s eastern frontier and should be treated accordingly.
The prime minister also referred to talks between Polish and Ukrainian foreign ministers earlier on Friday – Sikorski and Andrii Sybiha – which touched on tensions linked to the legacy of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
Tusk said he had signals suggesting Ukrainian politicians understood the need to avoid escalation and to engage in „honest dialogue” about the past.
He added that while good Polish-Ukrainian relations were in both countries’ interest, they required effort from Kyiv as well, and should not involve hostility or contempt.
The historical dispute between Warsaw and Kyiv focuses on the legacy of the UPA, a nationalist force that fought for Ukrainian independence during and after World War II.
Many Ukrainians regard UPA members as national heroes for resisting both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union and for their role in Ukraine’s struggle for independence.
In Poland, however, the group is widely associated with the Volhynia massacres, a campaign of ethnic violence in 1943-1945 in which Polish authorities say about 100,000 Poles were killed by Ukrainian nationalists.
Tensions over the wartime killings have periodically strained relations between Warsaw and Kyiv, despite Poland’s strong political and military support for Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to name a military unit after „Heroes of the UPA” has drawn widespread criticism in Poland.
Nawrocki decided to revoke Zelensky’s Order of the White Eagle, the country’s highest state honour, in response.
(ał)
Source: PAP
Radio Poland