Polish President Andrzej Duda recommended that NATO arrange discussions with the leaders of Georgia and Ukraine during the Alliance's Madrid Summit in June 2022.
President Duda made the declaration after meeting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, emphasising that conversations with Presidents Salome Zourabichvili and Volodymyr Zelenskyy will show support to the two nations and that NATO is not abandoning them.
"They have always been committed allies of NATO, and the Alliance remembers them in this regard," the Polish President said, adding that it was one of the most pressing concerns "especially for the Alliance's reputation."
Considering Russia's military build-up around Ukraine and deployments in Belarus, Poland's president stated that he feels it is vital to boost NATO's presence over the whole eastern flank. He went on to say that reinforcements would also be required in southern Europe.
President Duda and Secretary-General Stoltenberg discussed NATO's ties with China, which joined Russia in a joint statement to declare its opposition to NATO enlargement for the first time and urged on the Alliance to "abandon its ideologised cold war tactics."
