The Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has in his first international press interview since taking office, urged Europe to prepare for a potential future conflict with Russia by embracing a new era of warfare and acting accordingly.
According to him, Europe is in a “pre-war era” but still has a “long way to go” before its ready to confront the threat posed by Russia.
In an interview with German newspaper Die Welt published on Friday, he said “War is no longer a concept from the past. It is real, and it started over two years ago. The most worrying thing at the moment is that literally any scenario is possible. We haven’t seen a situation like this since 1945,”
“I know it sounds devastating, especially for the younger generation, but we have to get used to the fact that a new era has begun: the pre-war era. I’m not exaggerating; it’s becoming clearer every day.”
According to him, Europeans should respect the fundamental principle of NATO and spend a minimum of 2% of GDP on defense; Initiate a discourse on European arms bonds and increase the involvement of the European Investment Bank. He believes the necessary amount of funds have to expended as much as possible to support Ukraine, as this is a very critical period since the end of the Second World War.
“If we cannot support Ukraine with enough equipment and ammunition, and Ukraine loses, no one in Europe will be able to feel safe.” he further noted.
Recall, Tusk returned to power after last year’s election and has since been trying to reposition Poland back into the European mainstream after nearly a decade of authoritarian rule under the populist Law and Justice Party.