Poland says it will help Sweden, Finland if they're attacked before NATO accession

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland will assist Sweden and Finland, should they be attacked before obtaining NATO membership, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Thursday.

"I consider the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO as an important signal of strengthening security in Europe," he said during a conference.

"I want to make it clear that in the event of an attack on Sweden or Finland during their accession (process), Poland will come to their aid."

Finland and Sweden formally applied to join the NATO alliance on Wednesday, a decision spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and setting in motion an accession process that is expected to take only a few weeks.

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(Reporting by Pawel Florkiewicz and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; editing by John Stonestreet)