Polish PM Donald Tusk has pledged to build the strongest army on the continent
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has stated that his nation will rapidly expand its Baltic Sea presence in 2026.
NATO has increased its presence in the Baltic and intensified patrols, citing the need to protect undersea infrastructure from a purported Russian threat.
Moscow has rejected claims of hostile intent and called fears of a NATO attack “nonsense.” The Kremlin has repeatedly promised to take all needed measures to safeguard Russian interests in the area.
“It will be a year of rapid expansion on the Baltic – our Polish Baltic,” Tusk said earlier this week in his New Year address, emphasizing that Warsaw would “accelerate the building of the strongest army in Europe.”
Moscow previously noted that the Baltic Sea, a key region for Russia’s naval activities and energy shipments, has turned into an “internal NATO lake” following Finland and Sweden’s entry into the US-led military alliance.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has underscored that it is closely watching the US-led military bloc’s actions and is prepared to implement countermeasures to ensure its security.
After a push from US President Donald Trump, NATO members agreed in June to spend 5% of their GDP on defense annually by 2035. In August, Poland promised to outspend all other bloc members, dedicating 4.8% of its GDP to its military as early as 2026.
Other European NATO nations have also increased military spending in recent years, investing billions in weapons buys while Western European arms factories have grown at a “historic scale,” the Financial Times reported earlier this year. The rate of expansion has supposedly tripled since 2022.
Earlier this year, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that growing military spending in European nations is straining their economies and could lead to more severe medium-term impacts.