Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has reaffirmed Poland’s commitment to supporting Ukraine regardless of the circumstances – the head of the Polish government made this statement following a meeting in Berlin with the leaders of Germany, France, Italy and the UK, according to a Radio Free Europe correspondent.
“Regardless of the circumstances, regardless of emotions – and they happen everywhere and to everyone – we will defend European unity, both during the war in our support for Ukraine and in our confrontation with Russia, and in the future,” Tusk said.
The Polish Prime Minister, who had insisted on his country’s participation in European talks on a possible end to the war in Ukraine, emphasised the importance of the eastern flank being represented in various forms of cooperation.
“Without Poland, without the Nordic countries, without the Baltic states, and without Romania, it will be difficult to achieve success in this civilisational confrontation with our aggressive eastern neighbours. I would like to emphasise that this also has a practical dimension for Poland. That is precisely why tomorrow, regardless of the circumstances, I will hold a conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine as planned,” he said.
According to Tusk, this will be yet another contribution by Poland and Europe to Ukraine’s recovery, to supporting Ukraine today and to its post-war reconstruction.
What are the E5 leaders saying?
The leaders of the so-called ‘Euro Five’, or E5 – Europe’s largest states – met in Berlin to coordinate their positions ahead of the NATO summit and to discuss, in particular, further support for Ukraine. The Alliance’s Secretary-General, Mark Rutte, joined the summit via video link. Volodymyr Zelenskyy had not planned to attend, the Ukrainian President’s office told Radio Free Europe.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will brief the presidents of the United States and Turkey – which is to host the summit in Ankara in July – on the outcome of the talks.
“We want the summit in Ankara to send a powerful signal of support for Ukraine. The Federal Government proposes that we, as European NATO allies, provide Kyiv with substantial financial guarantees. The message to Russia is this: Ukraine remains strong. Europe’s support is not wavering … We hope Moscow will draw the appropriate conclusions from this. The time has come to begin peace talks,” Merz emphasised.
Read also: The ‘salami process’ for Ukraine. The EU does not want to open all negotiation clusters at once
French President Emmanuel Macron stressed that it is important to consolidate the decisions of the G7 summit in Evian, which is regarded in Europe as a success due, in particular, to the adoption of a joint declaration with the US in support of Ukraine.
“We are seeking to consolidate the decisions taken regarding oil and gas, and the resumption of the sanctions policy is moving precisely in this direction… That is precisely why we want to continue moving in this direction. We intend to consolidate this during our discussions in Ankara,” Macron emphasised.
The Italian Prime Minister, George Maloney, in turn, confirmed Italy’s intention to continue assisting Ukraine, particularly in preparing for the coming winter.
“We are actively working on issues relating to the protection of critical infrastructure and energy resilience – areas which President Zelenskyy particularly emphasised during the G7 summit and the European Council meeting in recent days,” the Prime Minister said.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently resigned and is leading the government pending the confirmation of his successor, noted that Ukraine is increasingly successful in pushing back the enemy on the battlefield. He expressed the partners’ determination to capitalise on the new opportunities that have opened up for Kyiv:
“There are signs that, as Russia loses ground and its economy faces ever-greater difficulties, the mood in Moscow is shifting and more and more people are speaking out against Putin’s war. It is therefore now extremely important to step up the pressure on the Russian economy through new sanctions and to provide Ukraine with additional military support.”
The Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC-2026) is due to begin in Gdańsk, Poland, on 25 June. The Ukrainian delegation is led by Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to attend the conference, but against the backdrop of tensions in relations with the Polish President Karol Nawrocki, his attendance was ultimately cancelled.