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EU President Tusk: Europe must ensure its own security

by AI | 23.Jan 2025 | Europe in brief AI

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk believes that Europe should stop asking the US what they can do to keep Europe safe. “Ask yourself that question. What can we do for our own security?” Tusk said Wednesday in the European Parliament. Both the EU member states and the European Union must “pump much more money into defense,” Tusk believes. “That doesn’t necessarily have to be forever.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Photo: Czarek Sokolowski/AP/dpa

STRASBOURG (ANP) – Tusk outlined the priorities of the Polish presidency of the European Union for the next six months in Strasbourg. Security is at the top, including foreign security, said the Polish Prime Minister.

Threats must be identified and addressed, Tusk argued. “Enough with standing around with our hands in our pockets.”

Poland spends nearly 5 percent of its gross domestic product on defense, said the Polish Prime Minister. The average among European NATO allies is around 2 percent. Both NATO chief Mark Rutte and Donald Trump have said that these expenses must increase significantly. Rutte hints at 3 percent while Trump demands 5 percent.

“If Europe wants to survive, we must invest in defense,” said Tusk.

Tusk did not shy away from using strong words in his speech. “The future of Ukraine depends on it, but also the future of all Europe. And to some extent maybe also the future of the entire world as we know it.”

The creation of a European army is, according to Tusk, a bad idea. “Because who will lead that army? Where should that army go? Where will it be deployed? Because I think Budapest would send that army in a different direction than Warsaw.” Instead of such “illusions,” everyone should realize, according to the Polish Prime Minister, that European money and European efforts must ensure a safer external border.

(January 22, 2025)