Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has revived one of the most famous phrases associated with NATO’s historical role, adapting it to today’s security environment in Europe.
“NATO was created to keep the Americans in, the Germans subdued and the Russians out,” Sikorski said.
However, the Polish foreign minister stressed that the situation has changed and that there is no longer any need to keep Germany in a limited position within the alliance.
“We no longer need to keep the Germans subdued, but we do need to keep the Russians out,” he said.
Sikorski’s remarks refer to a historic phrase attributed to Lord Hastings Ismay, NATO’s first secretary general. The expression was intended as a simplified description of the alliance’s strategic objectives during the Cold War.
Today, NATO remains a defensive alliance bringing together countries from Europe and North America, while relations with Russia have become one of the central security issues on the continent, particularly following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Sikorski’s comments reflect Poland’s increasingly firm position that maintaining strong U.S. involvement in European security and preventing further Russian expansion must remain among NATO’s central strategic priorities.
