A long-term re-armament of Europe is needed to counter Russian ambitions, Poland’s foreign minister said.
In an interview with the Guardian published on Saturday, Radosław Sikorski also said that Poland supports allowing Ukraine to use Western weapons for attacks on Russian soil.
Sikorski said Poland was “rediscovering” the need for re-armament with large volumes of low-tech equipment, such as shells.
“We have allowed all those production facilities to be closed down after the end of the Cold War,” Sikorski said. “It costs money to persuade companies to keep production lines in reserve. We just didn’t pay the money. That was part of the peace dividend. And with hindsight it looks like a mistake,” he said.
“It is obvious that Europe is lagging behind, and the EU’s defense and technological and industrial base suffers from years of underinvestment,” the minister added.
Poland spends almost 4 percent of its annual GDP on defense, making it one of the biggest military spenders in Europe.
Sikorski also told the Guardian the West should stop limiting itself in its support of Ukraine. He said Poland would back an EU-wide scheme to encourage Ukrainians to return home to fight.
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