“Poland has been talking to the United States about the possibility of including our country in the policy of providing nuclear weapons as part of NATO”, said Polish President Andrzej Duda.

Referring to Russian threats to use nuclear weapons, the Polish President stated that this shows Moscow’s mindset, which is dominated by the belief that “if Russia is not to be great, the world might not exist”.

Given the potential threats, Poland should perhaps think about a ‘nuclear umbrella’, according to the president.

“First of all, the problem is that we don’t have nuclear weapons. There is no indication that Poland is going to have it in the near future. There is always the potential possibility of participating in Nuclear Sharing. We have talked to the American leadership about whether the United States is considering such a possibility. The question is open”, Andrzej Duda stated.

Nuclear Sharing is NATO’s agreement on the sharing of tactical nuclear weapons, which ensures that both the benefits, responsibilities and risks of nuclear deterrence are shared among all members of the Alliance.

Advisor to the President of Poland, Minister Pawel Sałek said that this is a formula for agreeing to nuclear installations within the country that remain under the control of the allies. The US remains the disposer of the installations. “This would certainly enhance Poland’s security”, he added.

Nuclear Sharing does not expand the group of countries that have nuclear weapons. Currently, nine states, including three NATO members: the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, have nuclear weapons in the world.

Nuclear Sharing is an intermediate step towards the right to dispose of one’s own nuclear weapons. In the current international situation, it is necessary to talk about it,” said Paweł Sałek.

Adrian Andrzejewski