Germany, Poland Sign New Defense Agreement as Europe Pivots to Take Charge of Own Security

Germany and Poland have signed a new defense agreement, as Europe pivots toward taking more responsibility for its own security amid perceived threats from Russia and as the United States reorients its own defense priorities.

The Polish Ministry of National Defense said in a June 17 statement that the new agreement will provide a legal basis for building on current defense cooperation between the two countries, including developing interoperability between their respective armed forces and strengthening defense capabilities and deterrence.

“Common areas of cooperation included military training and exercises, the development of defense capabilities, and defense industry cooperation,” the statement reads.

There was also particular emphasis on the parties reinforcing NATO’s Eastern Flank and continuing support for Ukraine, which is in its fifth year of war with Russia.

The Defense Cooperation Agreement was signed by Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, Poland’s deputy prime minister and defense minister, and German Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius in Warsaw, and replaces a defense cooperation agreed in June 2011.

Kosiniak-Kamysz said that Polish and German military personnel will work together “in building security in Europe, which is a strategic element not only for the European Union but also for those who have included it as one of the elements of developing the security of the Eastern Flank and securing all of Europe.”

According to the Polish Ministry of Defense, the agreement will complement defense mechanisms within NATO and the EU. Germany and Poland are members of both supranational organizations.

“We are adding another element to building a new security architecture in Europe,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

“There is no security without Poland, there is no security without Germany, without our values, without our participation in the European Union and NATO.

“We are a European pillar, a pillar of the alliance. We are a European pillar of the European Union. We care about the security of our borders, we care about the security of Europe.”

US Security Priorities

The signing of the agreement comes as the United States plans a drawdown of its troops in Germany as it reprioritizes its security focus, and in the wake of the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war.

U.S. President Donald Trump has been pressuring NATO members to commit more to their own defense—a long-standing focus of the Republican president since his first term in office.

On Jan 23, the Pentagon released its National Defense Strategy, which outlines the U.S. plan to prioritize homeland defense, including by “defending America’s interests throughout the Western Hemisphere.”

It also stated that the United States would encourage partners in other parts of the world, including Europe, to take primary responsibility for their own defense “with critical but limited support from U.S. forces.”

Last year, NATO allies agreed to raise defense spending targets from 2 percent of GDP to 5 percent by 2035, with 3.5 percent for core defense, such as troops, arms, and equipment, and the other 1.5 percent to be spent on related areas, such as security and infrastructure.

Kosiniak-Kamysz said that Poland is already spending 5 percent of its GDP on defense and noted that Germany also changed its constitution to allow it to spend more on security.

Moscow Says It Won’t Initiate Conflict

Since Russia launched its invasion of eastern Ukraine in February 2022, Western allies have expressed concerns over potential escalating tensions with Moscow, prompting calls for Europe to better defend itself.

Last year, during a Chatham House speech in London, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said that “Russia could be ready to use military force against NATO within five years” and urged the defense alliance to strengthen itself and be ready to respond to an expanding range of threats.

Moscow has consistently denied that it has any intention of initiating conflict, particularly with Europe or NATO.

In February, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow is not interested in launching a military assault on Europe but will retaliate if European forces attack Russia.

“We have no intention of attacking Europe; we have absolutely no need for that,” Lavrov said in an interview aired on the NTV television channel.

“And if Europe were to carry out its threats to prepare for war against us and launch an attack on the Russian Federation, the president said that this would not be a special military operation on our part, but a full-scale military response using all available military means, in accordance with the relevant doctrinal documents,” he said, according to comments reported by Russian state-owned news agency TASS.