“NATO after the Hague Summit”: A Debate on Policy Paper by the Institute of Central Europe

The NATO summit in The Hague marked an unprecedented shift: a decision to raise the required level of defense spending to a record 5% of GDP over the next decade. This further increase in commitments to military and defense financing reflects the policies pursued by Donald Trump, whose approach has significantly reshaped the functioning of the Alliance—both in its European dimension and within the broader Indo-Pacific context.

What vision of the North Atlantic Alliance emerges from the June meeting of heads of state in The Hague? How did Poland fare at the summit, and can Europe still rely on the United States? These questions will be discussed by the following experts:

Dr. Jakub Bornio – PhD in political science and administration; lecturer at the University of Wrocław. He specializes in the foreign policy of Central and Eastern Europe, Poland’s security policy, and NATO affairs. Analyst at the Institute of Central Europe and co-author of the policy paper.

Dr. Marek Stefan – PhD in political science and administration; expert in international security. Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Układ Sił magazine. Collaborates with the Strategy and Future think tank; co-author of the policy paper.

Mariusz Marszałkowski – Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Defence24; lecturer at the University of Wrocław, Collegium Civitas, and the Polish Naval Academy in Gdynia. His work focuses on security, energy, and Poland’s eastern policy.

The debate will be moderated by Barbara Balicka, a doctoral candidate at the Institute of European Studies at the University of Wrocław.

The event is organized by the Regional Centre for International Debate for the Lower Silesia and Opole Voivodeships, run by the College of Eastern Europe, in cooperation with the Institute of Central Europe, the University of Wrocław, and the Ossolineum.

The debate will take place in Refektarz Ossolineum (the Ossolineum Refectory), ul. Szewska 37, Wrocław, on December 10, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. Free admission.