On Thursday, March 5, 2026, in Berlin, Paweł Zalewski, Secretary of State at the Ministry of National Defence, and Nils Hilmer, State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Defence, jointly opened the Polish-German expert forum (the Polish-German Defence Dialogue).
Photo: Ministry Of National Defence
The forum is being held at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland on Unter den Linden and has brought together representatives of Polish and German think tanks and research institutions, including the Polish Institute of International Affairs, the Centre for Eastern Studies, the Academic Center for Strategic Analysis, the Polish Academy of Sciences, and the German Council on Foreign Relations (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik).
The meeting was initiated by Paweł Zalewski, Secretary of State at the Ministry of National Defence, who, together with Nils Hilmer, State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Defence, served as its patrons. Both opened the forum with speeches in which they presented their countries’ positions on changes in the regional security situation in connection with Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, now in its fourth year, and expressed concern over the escalation of conflicts in the Middle East and their political and economic consequences for the world and for Europe.
Both state secretaries, together with the other members of their respective ministerial delegations, also held bilateral talks during which they discussed issues of interest to the two defense ministries, including a new agreement on security and defense cooperation, increased defense spending, the pressing issue of recruiting armed forces personnel, the prospects for the European Union’s defense autonomy, and the consequences of the escalation of the Middle East conflict for the issue of Ukraine.
The Secretary of State at the Ministry of National Defence also met at the Bundestag, the seat of the German parliament, with Thomas Röwekamp, Chair of the Parliamentary Defence Committee. Their discussion focused on the security situation and Polish-German relations in the area of defense. The Secretary of State expressed appreciation for the involvement of the German Air Force in protecting Polish airspace as part of the enhanced Air Policing North mission. Under this mission, German aircraft are carrying out air policing duties together with other allies in order to guarantee the security of NATO’s eastern flank.
The initiative of the first meeting of the Polish-German expert forum may prove to be a valuable contribution toward establishing regular meetings between expert institutions from both countries. The mutual exchange of views and joint discussion of differences in approaches to ongoing political developments remain an important impulse for understanding sometimes difficult bilateral relations.
Press release
🇵🇱🇩🇪 Today in Berlin: The Polish-German Defence Dialogue, jointly organized by the @PLinDeutschland, @PISM_Berlin, and @DGAPev. A session focused on coordinating defense strategies and strengthening the European pillar of NATO. #DefenceDialogue
➡️ Keynote speeches by State… pic.twitter.com/L84XSdIv45— PISM (@PISM_Poland) March 5, 2026