Paweł Soloch and Jakub Kumoch, who advise Polish President Andrzej Duda on security and foreign policies, joined an existing format that brings together the United States and four of its allies, Britain, Germany, Italy and France, officials told reporters.
The consultations were held on Tuesday by US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan to discuss stances ahead of next week’s talks between America and Russia (on January 10), NATO and Russia (January 12) and within the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE, January 13).
“We talked about directions for collective action in the face of a crisis created by Russia, in relation to which NATO must speak with one voice,” Kumoch told the Polish state news agency.
Meanwhile, the Polish president's National Security Bureau (BBN), which is headed by Soloch, said in a statement that “the position presented by Poland had been consulted with representatives of fellow Bucharest Nine (B9) countries.”
It added that “the Polish side stressed the need to maintain allied unity in relation to the threat of Russian aggression against Ukraine, and to strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defence policy.”
Another topic raised during the teleconference was the role of the OSCE in de-escalating tensions in Central and Eastern Europe, PAP reported.
As of the new year, Poland took over the chairmanship of the organisation.
Ahead of Tuesday’s consultations, Poland’s Soloch met in Warsaw with the US ambassador to the OSCE, Michael Carpenter.
The meeting focused on the threat of a Russian attack on Ukraine, among other topics, Soloch announced.
The Bucharest Nine (B9) is a Polish-Romanian initiative launched in 2015 that aims to help exchange views and coordinate positions on the security of NATO’s eastern-flank countries. It brings together Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, and Slovakia.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP