By Rob Harris
Brussels: At a time when Europe’s leadership has been diffuse and distracted, Radek Sikorski has emerged as one of the West’s clearest and most forceful voices urging continued support for Ukraine.
The Polish foreign minister is fighting to keep the trans-Atlantic alliance focused and Kyiv from falling, while urging vigilance against the broader threat posed by authoritarian powers.
Poland’s Radek Sikorski says the world has learnt that Putin is a “bad egg”, and its resolve is growing.Credit: NATO
Speaking to this masthead in a candid interview at NATO headquarters, the veteran diplomat paints a sobering picture of the global landscape, where Russia and China have defied post-Cold War optimism and instead pursued aggressive, expansionist paths.
“We hoped that after the Cold War, Russia and China would be transformed by capitalism,” Sikorski says. “But we’ve lost both bets. Russia became an aggressive kleptocracy. China weaponised capitalism to build itself into a nascent superpower.”
He argues that Moscow’s aggression and Beijing’s expansionism are part of the same pattern – and that how the West responds in Ukraine will set the tone for future conflicts.
“Both [China and Russia] are dissatisfied with the shape of their borders,” he said. “Russia started an aggressive war against a former colony. China threatens Taiwan and asserts itself in the South China Sea. What happens in Ukraine will set a precedent – whether you are entitled to what you regard as a renegade province.”
Sikorski’s return to the centrist government under Prime Minister Donald Tusk 18 months ago marked a turning point for Poland’s role in Europe. At 61, the former war correspondent, who in the 1980s braved Soviet bombardment to report on the invasion of Afghanistan, has brought both gravitas and urgency to the job.
Relations with Berlin and Paris – strained under the previous nationalist government – have improved, and Warsaw is now seen as a pivotal player in shaping the European Union’s strategic posture.
A fluent English speaker, Sikorski was granted asylum in Britain as a teenager after a crackdown by the Communist regime against dissidents in his homeland. He studied at Oxford, where he was a contemporary of former British prime minister Boris Johnson, and has emerged as a forceful and effective voice in countering Russian disinformation on the global stage.
But his forthright nature has, at times, landed him in hot water. In March, he was involved in a public spat with Trump lieutenants Elon Musk and Marco Rubio, Sikorski’s US counterpart, about the tech billionaire’s Starlink satellite internet system in Ukraine.
Radek Sikorski has emerged as one of the West’s clearest and most forceful voices against the broader threat posed by authoritarian powers.Credit: NATO
Sikorski’s strongest public asset is his deep experience in international diplomacy (he was foreign minister from 2007 to 2014) and his longstanding, clear-eyed stance on Russia – credentials that have only gained prominence amid today’s geopolitical upheaval.
“Coming from a country battered by history, I know we can’t stand alone,” he says. “But we can’t afford to be naive either. Europe must do more. And we must stand together – with America, with each other, and with those who are resisting tyranny.”
To that end, Poland is leading by example. This year, it will spend 4.12 per cent of its gross domestic product on defence – the highest level among NATO members and more than double the alliance’s 2 per cent guideline.
But while Warsaw is playing a central role in supporting Ukraine, Sikorski makes clear that his country would not deploy troops across the border. Instead, he says, its focus must remain on ensuring Ukraine can defend itself.
“The greatest, best guarantee of Ukraine’s security is a brave and well-equipped Ukrainian army,” he says.
“We are a frontline country … Our first duty to NATO is to secure the external border of the alliance. Remember, we have 600 kilometres of border with Russia and Belarus, and we have a key logistical hub in Poland that must be protected.”
While many European leaders remain anxious about the Trump administration, Sikorski offers a more measured assessment. He describes US President Donald Trump’s approach to Ukraine as “unusual”, but not necessarily ineffective.
“[Trump] has mercurial moods and unorthodox bargaining tactics,” Sikorski says. “I think he’s giving Putin a chance to exit this disastrous war with face, but if Putin doesn’t take this chance, I think Trump is capable of coming on strong.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (right) speak with Canada’s Justin Trudeau in March.Credit: AP
He also points to increased European defence spending as a sign of a reinvigorated alliance – and a development that deserves recognition from Washington.
“Non-US NATO countries are now spending double what we were in 2016,” he says. “That’s remarkable progress, and I hope President Trump appreciates it. But it’s still not enough. That spending has to turn into real capabilities.”
Despite the improved posture in Europe, Sikorski also cautions against underestimating Russia, or assuming its actions will follow rational calculations.
“We can’t discount it,” he says of concerns that Poland could be targeted if Ukraine were to fall. “Not that Russia would succeed – NATO’s economy is 20 times larger. If we mobilise like they have, we would dwarf them militarily.”
But war, he warned, is not always logical.
“Just because it’s crazy doesn’t mean it won’t be tried. Putin attacked Ukraine based on hyper-optimistic assumptions. Leaders after 20 years in power are surrounded by yes men. We can’t exclude criminal mistakes in the future.”
Sikorski welcomes Australia’s involvement in discussions about Ukraine’s future, as part of a coalition of the willing, saying it reflects a broader global recognition of what is at stake. He sees Ukraine’s struggle as more than just a European issue. It is, increasingly, a global one.
Russia’s foreign policy, Sikorski says, functions more like an intelligence service than a traditional diplomatic apparatus. And while authoritarian regimes may misread open debate as weakness, they do so at their peril.
“Putin miscalculates because he sees us debating things openly. He sees our slow consensus-building as weakness. But once we decide someone’s a bad egg, we can be impressively firm,” he says.
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