Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has claimed that Poland and Europe are capable of fighting Russia without the United States, arguing that Europeans defeated Russia in the past before America even existed.
“Our economy is nine, ten times bigger, I’m talking about the EU, than Russia,” Sikorski said. “And you know, we fought Russia successfully before the United States existed, so we should be capable of doing it today.”
The remark came during a wide-ranging interview with TVP World in which Sikorski repeatedly pushed for continued confrontation with Moscow and rejected any move toward compromise or de-escalation in the war in Ukraine.
Asked what would force Russia to negotiate, Sikorski dismissed diplomacy and instead argued for further economic pressure. “What will bring Russia to the table is the further degradation of the Russian economy,” he said, adding that President Vladimir Putin “is not there yet.”
The liberal politician and key ally of Prime Minister Donald Tusk claimed Putin still aims to subjugate all of Ukraine and said the war should continue until Russia is no longer capable of pursuing those goals. He argued that pressure must be applied to Moscow, not Kyiv. “We pile pressure on the aggressor, not on the victim of aggression,” he said.
He also defended the EU’s repeated rounds of sanctions, rejecting criticism that the need for constant updates shows they are ineffective. Sikorski argued that sanctions must be continuously expanded, including against tankers and crews involved in exporting Russian oil.
Despite Poland’s central role as a logistical hub for Ukraine, the Polish foreign minister acknowledged that Warsaw is not part of the main diplomatic talks involving the United States, Germany, France, and Britain. He denied that this reflected a failure of Polish diplomacy and pointed instead to Poland’s refusal to send troops to Ukraine.
“The president of Poland has said that under no circumstances will he allow any Polish military presence in Ukraine,” Sikorski said, noting that other European countries are openly discussing troop deployments.
Since the interview with TVP World, both Britain and France have pledged to deploy peacekeeping troops to Ukraine following any agreement to end the war.
Throughout the interview, Sikorski argued that Europe must prepare to defend itself without assuming U.S. military support will always be available. He warned that Washington may be unable to help Europe if it becomes involved in a conflict in Asia.
“If the U.S. gets involved in a war in Asia, it might not be capable of helping us,” he said, adding that Europe has until the end of the decade to rebuild its military strength.
Sikorski rejected any peace deal that would leave Ukraine with unclear borders or unresolved territorial disputes, warning against another Minsk-style agreement. “We don’t need a Minsk 3,” he said.
The foreign minister concluded by arguing that Russia must be forced to accept defeat, leaving no room for half measures. “We will get a fair solution only once Russian elites have concluded that the invasion was a mistake,” he said.
