When asked about his goals for a NATO summit in Poland’s capital of Warsaw later this month, Duda replied the alliance needs “a missile defense to make sure NATO troops can safely move to the area of the threat.”
“The missile potential of the Russian Federation is so big that such effective deployment of troops will not be possible,” Duda told the event, which was sponsored by the Atlantic Council and the Center for European Policy Analysis.
Duda cited tensions in Europe stemming from Crimea’s decision to rejoin Russia, as well as ongoing fighting between Ukrainian troops and independence supporters in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow has repeatedly warned that NATO amassing troops and equipment on Russia's borders constitute provocative acts that can destabilize the region.
Duda is visiting the United States to attend the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by US President Barack Obama in Washington, DC.
