European countries will not create one united army, says Poland’s Sikorski

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WARSAW (Reuters) – European countries will not create one unified army in response to threats from Russia, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in an interview with state TV broadcast late on Saturday.

Earlier on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for the creation of a European army, saying the continent could no longer be sure of protection from the United States and would only get respect from Washington with a strong military.

Asked about the possibility of the creation of a European army, Sikorski told TVP World that “we should be careful with this term because people understand different things”.

“If you understand by it the unification of national armies, it will not happen,” he said. “But I have been an advocate for Europe, for the European Union, to develop its own defence capabilities.”

He said the EU was currently forming a reinforced brigade.

“If the U.S. wants us to step up in defence, it should have a national component, a NATO component, but I also believe a European EU component, EU subsidies for the defence industry to build up our capacity to produce, but also an EU force worthy of its name,” Sikorski said.

He reiterated that having Polish troops on the ground in Ukraine was “not a consideration, because Poland’s duty to NATO is to protect the eastern flank, i.e. its own territory”.

(Reporting by Alan Charlish; Editing by Jamie Freed)