Poland’s foreign minister has said that joint action is needed to combat growing hybrid threats posed by Russia in the Baltic region.
Speaking at an annual gathering of Polish diplomats on Tuesday, Radosław Sikorski said that Russia has been actively targeting Baltic Sea nations through various forms of aggression, including “disrupting GPS signals,” conducting “sabotage operations such as arson attacks in Poland,” and launching cyberattacks.
“In response, we need to take collective actions,” he said.
Sikorski said that the Baltic Sea has become a "NATO pond,” making it a focal point of geopolitical tensions, particularly with Russia.
At Tuesday’s meeting of Polish diplomats, which was attended by Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Sikorski said that NATO’s expansion to include Finland and Sweden strengthens the alliance's ability to address security challenges.
“Allies have to be able to support each other in defending critical infrastructure, developing measures to better address hybrid threats and strategic signaling over Russia's nuclear threats,” Sikorski said.
“We need to demonstrate our united strength,” he added.
President Stubb echoed Sikorski’s message, pointing to the increased geopolitical importance of the Baltic region and arguing that the addition of Finland and Sweden to NATO enhances regional security.
Stubb said: “Russian intimidation has increased the security of the Baltic Sea region, paradoxically, and also increased the strength and security of NATO.”
He also said that the Western military alliance “must not let Putin win this war.”
“In response, we need to take collective actions,” he said.
Sikorski said that the Baltic Sea has become a "NATO pond,” making it a focal point of geopolitical tensions, particularly with Russia.
At Tuesday’s meeting of Polish diplomats, which was attended by Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Sikorski said that NATO’s expansion to include Finland and Sweden strengthens the alliance's ability to address security challenges.
“Allies have to be able to support each other in defending critical infrastructure, developing measures to better address hybrid threats and strategic signaling over Russia's nuclear threats,” Sikorski said.
“We need to demonstrate our united strength,” he added.
President Stubb echoed Sikorski’s message, pointing to the increased geopolitical importance of the Baltic region and arguing that the addition of Finland and Sweden to NATO enhances regional security.
Stubb said: “Russian intimidation has increased the security of the Baltic Sea region, paradoxically, and also increased the strength and security of NATO.”
He also said that the Western military alliance “must not let Putin win this war.”
Presidential meeting
During his visit to Poland, the Finnish president also met with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda.
At a joint press conference, Duda said: “Today, we face common challenges, and we are working together to address them. The greatest of these challenges is the war in Ukraine and Russian aggression.”
He encouraged the Finnish Armed Forces to take part in the Dragon and Anakonda military exercises, conducted in Poland with allied participation.
Duda also said that Finland faces similar migratory pressure from Russia as Poland does from Belarus. “We talked about this threat, as well as the policies that should be implemented to address it.”
Stubb agreed with Duda that Russia is the “number one” enemy, noting that Poland and Finland share much in common. "We have historical experiences with Russia and view it as the number one threat to security in our region. Both of us have responded very decisively and effectively to Russian aggression against Ukraine," he said.
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