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More efficient NATO command needed: Polish defence minister

PR dla Zagranicy
Alicja Baczyńska 27.05.2018 11:00
More efficient command structures within NATO are key to boosting the alliance’s capacity for deterrence and defence, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said on the third day of the Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Warsaw on Sunday.
Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak (2L), Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces Adam Joks (2R). Photo: PAP/Adam GuzDefence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak (2L), Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces Adam Joks (2R). Photo: PAP/Adam Guz

In an address, Błaszczak focused on the role of parliaments in providing security for NATO member states. He added that parliaments were the place where decisions on security budgets were taken, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.

Błaszczak said he hoped that a July NATO summit in Brussels will contribute to greater deterrence and defence capabilities for the alliance. “To reach that end, we need a more effective NATO command structure, including the land command,” he said.

According to Błaszczak, NATO needs “more combat forces with a higher degree of readiness, which should be closely affiliated to commands.”

“We must create more detailed defence plans, modify training and drills, so as to restore the military capacity for carrying out defence operations,” Błaszczak said.

On the first day of the Parliamentary Assembly, Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said efforts must be undertaken to boost NATO’s eastern flank. He added the effectiveness of the alliance reflected its capacity to adapt to new conditions.

“At present, we must make sure that decisions on shoring up security on NATO’s eastern flank taken at summits in Newport and Warsaw are completely implemented and irreversible.”

The four-day Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly is centred on issues such as NATO’s deterrence policy, ways of counteracting hybrid threats from Russia, and challenges related to energy security in Central and Eastern Europe.

Officials including NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Polish President Andrzej Duda as well as Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki were expected to take part in the event, which will culminate with a plenary meeting on Monday, IAR reported.

The NATO Parliamentary Assembly consists of 266 delegates from the 29 NATO member states, in addition to representatives from associate countries and observers from other nations.

(aba)

Source: IAR, PAP

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