Poland denies considering request for nuclear weapons

WARSAW, Poland — Poland's Defense Ministry denied on Sunday that it is considering asking for access to nuclear weapons through a NATO program under which the U.S. places them on the territory of certain allied states.

On Saturday, Deputy Defense Minister Tomasz Szatkowski said that the ministry was currently discussing whether to ask to take part in NATO's so-called Nuclear Sharing program to improve the country's defenses. He made the comments in an interview with the private broadcaster Polsat.

But the Defense Ministry issued a statement on its website on Sunday denying that discussions are underway.

"Within the Defense Ministry there is presently no work underway concerning the accession of our country to the NATO Nuclear Sharing program," the statement said.

The 28-member NATO has three nuclear powers, the U.S., France and Britain, but only the U.S. has provided weapons to allies for nuclear sharing. Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey have hosted nuclear weapons as part of the program.