UK, Poland cooperate against Russian ‘disinformation’

Britain and Poland will set up a new joint unit to tackle Russian “disinformation” and meet once a year to discuss hostile activity from Moscow, Prime Minister Theresa May said Thursday.

She was speaking after talks with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and their respective defence, foreign, business and interior ministers in London.

“We resolve to defend our democracies through annual consultations on Russia’s hostile activity and closer collaboration between our defence and security services. Discussions will begin early next year,” May told a joint press conference.

“We will also share our expertise to set up a new unit in Poland that directly counters Russian disinformation and ensures quick attribution of hostile activity against state or commercial targets.”

May cited the nerve agent attack in Salisbury in March and an attempted hack of the global chemical weapons body in The Hague — both blamed on Russia — and which she said were “unacceptable”.

Britain and Poland, both NATO allies, last December signed a new defence and security treaty.

Morawiecki emphasised the importance of keeping the US-led military alliance strong, particularly “where we can see threats from our eastern neighbours”.

The pair also discussed Brexit, with the Polish leader emphasising that the deal May agreed with the EU last month would be “beneficial for both parties”.

May assured an estimated one million Poles living in Britain they could remain after Brexit, saying in Polish: “Yes, you can definitely stay.”