Donald Tusk, Poland’s newly elected prime minister, has pledged to win full Western support for Ukraine in its war against Russia and mediate past hurdles with the European Union.
Tusk spoke to parliament ahead of a confidence vote on Tuesday after his election victory, which paved the way for a new pro-EU government after eight years of far-right nationalist rule under the Law and Justice party, which had engaged in repeated disputes with Brussels.
“We will … loudly and decisively demand the full mobilisation of the free world, the Western world, to help Ukraine in this war. There is no alternative,” Tusk told lawmakers as he outlined his government’s plans.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is to hold talks with United States President Joe Biden later on Tuesday as he makes his case for more US aid for his country at a time of increasing doubts among many Republican lawmakers in the US Congress.
Tusk said it hurts him to hear that Zelenskyy has to keep trying to persuade world leaders about the need to continue supporting Kyiv’s struggle against Moscow.
“They say it to President Zelenskyy’s face that they no longer have the strength, that they are exhausted,” Tusk said.
Tusk also promised to resolve a monthlong blockade at the Ukraine border by Polish truckers, who are demanding the reintroduction of entry permits for their Ukrainian competitors.
“We found a way to meet the needs of Polish truckers as soon as possible and immediately unblock the border,” Tusk said.