By Jo Harper
WARSAW (AA) – Polish troops will come to the defense of Lithuania even if NATO’s Article 5 is not triggered, Poland's President Andrzej Duda said in an interview with Lithuanian television LRT on Friday.
“Polish troops will come to the defense of Lithuania. This concerns situations, disturbing incidents, that would not yet justify the use of Article 5,” Duda said.
The two NATO members, Poland and Lithuania, share a border along the so-called Suwalki Gap, a choke point of strategic and military importance. The gap separates Russian-ally Belarus from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
Duda did not define what "disturbing incidents" could mean, though there have been some minor incursions into both Polish and Lithuanian air space since the war in Ukraine started two years ago.
“Breaking the principle set out in Article Five, i.e. collective defense of attacked NATO territory, would be a disaster. This would actually mean the collapse of the alliance,” Duda said.
He said Russia is currently the "greatest threat" not only to the region, but the entire world. “There is a saying: ‘If you want peace, prepare for war.’ This means strengthening yourself, building your defense potential and thus discouraging a potential aggressor from attacking. This is what I want for Poland and this is what I encourage all our allies to do,” said the president.
“I recently submitted a proposal to increase defense spending in NATO countries from 2% to 3% of GDP. We must prepare for war and build our military potential. This is the most important goal today. The goal is not war. The goal is for us not to have to fight,” he added.