Polish president says Warsaw should consider having its own nuclear weapons

Poland’s president said his country should explore developing its own nuclear defense capabilities, given the ongoing threats from neighboring Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago.

President Karol Nawrocki said Sunday in an interview with Polsat television that he was a “great supporter of Poland joining the nuclear project.”

Mr. Nawrocki said he doesn’t know whether Poland will become the 10th country confirmed or widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, but said the looming threat from Russia can’t be ignored.

“We are a country on the brink of armed conflict. It is clear what the aggressive imperial Russian Federation’s attitude towards Poland is,” he said. “We need to act in this direction so we can begin work.”

The United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom are officially recognized as nuclear-weapon states under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. India, Pakistan, and North Korea have openly tested and declared their nuclear capabilities but aren’t recognized under the treaty.

Meanwhile, Israel has never officially confirmed or denied having the bomb but is believed to possess its own arsenal of about 90 warheads. 

Poland would have to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty if it were to develop, produce or acquire its own independent nuclear weapons. Doing so could trigger diplomatic sanctions and international isolation.

Former Polish President Andrzej Duda has suggested that his country could host U.S. controlled nuclear weapons, which would not trigger a violation of the NPT.