Poland working to get security guarantees for Ukraine at NATO summit - Duda

Poland is trying to get additional security guarantees for Ukraine at the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius this July.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, Polish President Andrzej Duda said this at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in Warsaw on April 5.

"Today, we are trying to get additional security guarantees for Ukraine at the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius that will take place in the near future. They will strengthen Ukraine's military potential, the sense of security of Ukrainian society, and will also be very strong support for Ukrainian soldiers in their fight against the Russian invader," Duda said.

He noted that Poland strongly supports Ukraine's membership in NATO. "We hope that we will be able to obtain such guarantees for Ukraine as a prelude to Ukraine's future full membership of NATO, in which Poland has strongly supported Ukraine all the time," the Polish president added.

Duda also said that Poland supports Ukraine becoming a full member of the European Union as quickly as possible.

Duda said that security issues had been discussed at his meeting with Zelensky and that he had assured the Ukrainian leader of Poland's continued support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression. According to him, Poland is currently the third largest country -- after the United States and Britain -- in terms of the amount of military aid provided to Ukraine.

According to Duda, negotiations also concerned the development of economic cooperation. He noted that Poland is currently Ukraine's largest economic partner and expressed hope that this bilateral cooperation would continue.

In addition, both parties discussed "complex elements of the past" between Ukraine and Poland and important historical issues that "very often remain a wound in many families today." According to Duda, there is "no taboo" on this topic between the two leaders.

"I am convinced that President [Zelensky] and I will pursue a calm, consistent and good policy of building ties between our peoples, including the policy of memory - honest, reliable memory," he said.

He added that the ties between the Polish and Ukrainian peoples had become closer amid the dramatic situation in which the Ukrainians found themselves due to Russian aggression and the two nations would be able to "build a great future."

Photo: Office of the President of Ukraine