Poland Urges EU to Deploy Rapid Reaction Forces Across Its Neighborhood
"The EU should be more capable of acting in its immediate neighborhood," Sikorski said, according to a post by the Polish Foreign Ministry on X following a joint press conference alongside Irish Foreign Minister Helen McEntee.
The minister pointed to the Western Balkans and a potentially deteriorating Libya as the kind of flashpoints that demand a credible and deployable European response capacity.
"Whether in the Balkans or, for example, if the situation in Libya were to take a turn for the worse," he said.
Sikorski elaborated that the rapid reaction forces he envisions — which he acknowledged Europe "theoretically already have" — should be financed directly from the EU budget, operate under pre-agreed rules of engagement, and draw on volunteers from across member states.
Central to his argument was the need for Europe to shed its dependency on outside partners when managing lower-intensity security challenges on its own doorstep.
"The United States is right to say that, in its immediate neighborhood, deterring Putin is a task for NATO as a whole, but in smaller-scale operations, we should be able to ensure our own security without constantly imposing ourselves on others or asking for help," Sikorski said in a separate ministry post.
He rounded out his case by casting stronger European defense capabilities not as a departure from transatlantic solidarity, but as a reinforcement of it — arguing such capacity would render the bloc "a more credible ally to the US and a more credible continent to our competitors and friends."
The remarks come as European capitals intensify discussions over defense spending and strategic independence amid shifting dynamics within NATO and growing pressure from Washington for allies to shoulder a greater share of collective security responsibilities.
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