The East Shield project, designed to shore up Poland’s border with Russia and Belarus, has been designated one of the EU’s top priorities, the Polish prime minister has said.
Speaking after a summit of European leaders in Brussels this week, Donald Tusk said the bloc had decided to follow Poland’s example in boosting defense spending, with officials this week unveiling a €150 billion plan to reshape the continent’s security architecture.
“I can say with satisfaction that East Shield has already been permanently entered as one of the European defense priorities and this will have its consequences,” he told reporters.
Tusk said that Polish officials had had to argue strongly for the need to invest in the strengthening of the EU’s eastern border. He added that Poland—which is set to spend 4.7% of its GDP on defense this year—would “no longer be alone” since EU leaders have committed to increasing defense investment.
“Europe can no longer be defenseless,” he said. “If NATO is to continue to be a pact that guarantees security for Poland and Europe, it is already obvious to everyone that Europe must take on much more responsibility.”
The Polish authorities developed the East Shield project in 2024 in an attempt to boost its frontier defenses, and the building of barriers, fences and military facilities started in November. It has since been adopted as an EU scheme, granting it access to funding from Brussels.
On Thursday, Poland’s defense ministry announced that the European Investment Bank had agreed in principle to spend €1 billion on the project.
But its designation as a European venture has faced domestic opposition, with right-wing politicians accusing Tusk’s coalition government of ceding control over the project.
Earlier this month, the right-wing nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, along with the far-right Konfederacja, voted against a resolution backing the East Shield and wider EU defense policy in the European Parliament and did so again in the Polish parliament on Thursday. The motion passed nonetheless.
