The Polish president, whose nation is the most powerful NATO state bordering Ukraine, told Threat Status in an exclusive interview Tuesday that he sharply rejects the notion of any cease-fire deal that would require Kyiv to cede territory to Moscow.
Mr. Duda drew a clear line in the sand on the matter as NATO’s 75th Anniversary leaders summit opened in Washington — a gathering occurring at a moment when China, fellow NATO ally Hungary and some leading American politicians are issuing fresh calls for a rapid negotiated end to the Russia-Ukraine war.
“I would like this war to end as soon as possible. However, it cannot end, it must not end in the victory of Russia because if it happened that way, we will have another war soon because Russia will attack again,” said Mr. Duda. “Russian imperialism has to be reprimanded. It has to be punished in Ukraine.”
He separately rebutted the narrative that the U.S. commitment to NATO is faltering. Critics fear such a trend would rapidly accelerate if Republican candidate Donald Trump returns to the White House. “To me, it is most important that this anniversary NATO summit is taking place in Washington because this demonstrates who the most important entity is,” he said. “The one who is the strongest hosts the anniversary summit. … Nobody protested against that in NATO.”