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Russia is main threat to NATO's eastern flank, Polish president says after talks with Lithuanian leader

20.10.2026 15:45
Russia's aggressive policy is the biggest security threat to countries on the eastern flank of NATO, Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki said after talks in Warsaw on Tuesday with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda.
Audio
Polish President Karol Nawrocki (right) greets Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda at the presidential palace in Warsaw on Tuesday.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki (right) greets Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda at the presidential palace in Warsaw on Tuesday.Photo: PAP/Radek Pietruszka

At a joint news conference on Tuesday, Nawrocki said strengthening NATO's eastern flank must be a shared priority for Poland and Lithuania.

He said Russia was waging hybrid operations against countries in the region, including cyber-attacks, disinformation, sabotage and pressure on borders, and that the answer must be close allied cooperation and stronger resilience.

He also called for "joint reflection" on an agreement between the United States and Russia on supplies of Russian diesel to world markets, saying that efforts to stabilise the energy market should not weaken pressure on Moscow.

Nawrocki added that the partnership between Poland and Lithuania must also rest on respect for the rights of national minorities.

He thanked Nauseda for taking an interest in the fate of a Polish school in Paluknys, in Lithuania's Trakai (Troki) district, and said he hoped to share "good news" soon.

Polish community groups in Lithuania appealed in July for the protection of their schools.

Local authorities in the Trakai district have stripped two Polish educational institutions of their independent status: a primary school in Senieji Trakai last school year, and a secondary one in Paluknys, with about 120 pupils, from September 1, Polish state news agency PAP reported.

Nauseda said the two neighbouring countries were working together for a "safe, free and united Europe."

He linked the meeting to the 235th anniversary of the Mutual Pledge of the Two Nations, saying the lessons of that historical alliance had taken on new significance amid Russia’s continuing aggression against Ukraine.

He called for more pressure on Moscow, including sanctions, and said Lithuania had proposed joint military exercises next spring involving Poland and the Baltic states.

He also said that security and defence would be among the priorities of Lithuania's presidency of the European Union in the first half of next year.

(ał/gs)

Source: PAP, IAR

Click on the audio player above for a report by Michał Owczarek