On Tuesday, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared in Warsaw that Typhoon fighter jets will patrol Polish airspace. During his visit, Sunak met with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Speaking alongside Tusk at a joint press conference, Sunak chose to first address the audience in Polish, affirming, “We are allies forever.”
“There is a strong bond between Poland and the United Kingdom, which fosters security,” he said. “We will strengthen our cooperation in all formats to work on the most crucial aspects of air defense.”
The U.K. prime minister also said he would send 16,000 troops to Poland.
“We will also bring Typhoon fighters here, which will patrol Polish airspace, support Poland, and we will contribute to that. We also want to send 16,000 troops as part of Britain’s support,” he pledged.
“We are major military powers that are aiding Ukraine,” Sunak noted. Before the visit, British sources announced the provision of new aid to Ukraine totaling half a billion pounds. As emphasized, this is the largest single British aid package for Ukraine.
Tusk said that during their private meeting, the politicians primarily discussed security and defense, saying that it is “about the security of Poland, the United Kingdom, and Europe.”
He acknowledged that they also addressed this topic during a conversation with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
“There is no doubt that from the various initiatives undertaken, in which both our countries are active, a coordinated security policy must immediately emerge, covering the entire continent and the United Kingdom,” he said.
“And that is our common intention, we must end this period of certain competition and rivalry between different initiatives for the defense of Europe and the United Kingdom,” he added.
