On 20 December 2023, the establishment of the so-called Tallinn Mechanism was announced, with the aim of strengthening the cooperation of NATO allied countries in coordinating their activities to support Ukraine in the area of cyber security.

Ministries of Foreign Affairs (MFAs): Denmark, Estonia, France, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Sweden, the United States and the United Kingdom have announced the establishment of the Tallinn Mechanism to support Ukraine in the digital area.

According to the Ministry of Digitalisation, the establishment of the so-called Tallinn Mechanism within NATO is aimed at coordinating and mutually supporting activities to improve Ukraine’s cyber security and build its resilience to cyber threats.

As part of this initiative, Poland has agreed to take on the role of the so-called Back Office collecting the Ukrainian side’s cyber security needs on the one hand and offers of concrete assistance and support from the group’s members on the other.

As highlighted by the Ministry of Digitalisation, participation in the structures of the Tallinn Mechanism is part of the implementation of one of the specific objectives of the Cyber Security Strategy of the Republic of Poland for 2019-2024, i.e. building a strong international position of Poland in the area of cyber security.

As cyber threats largely have a cross-border dimension, it is crucial to ensure cooperation with allies and strategic partners of Poland and Ukraine. This includes, for example: sharing information on threats such as cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, telecommunications systems or supply chains.

Polish government already signed an agreement with Ukraine in August 2022 on cooperation in the field of digitalisation and cyber security. During this time, a number of projects in support of Ukraine were successfully implemented, including the construction of a mobile data centre or the purchase of equipment and access to broadband satellite communications (Starlink terminals).

Adrian Andrzejewski