Poland has decided on an ambitious rearmament program: Warsaw plans to invest 43 billion euros in the modernization of its armed forces by 2026, including the purchase of new fighter jets, combat helicopters, submarines and short-range anti-ship missiles. The defense budget is to be increased to 2.5 percent of gross domestic product by 2030.
“Security was, is and will be our priority,” said Mariusz Błaszczak, Minister of National Defence, a few days ago after signing the plan for the technical modernization of the Polish army. “A moment ago, I signed one of the most important planning documents for our armed forces. The plan assumes investments of 43 billion euros by 2026, which is significantly more than originally planned. This is of course a great challenge, but also a unique opportunity to develop the defense capabilities of the Polish army.”
Błaszczak continues: “We will significantly change the face of the Polish army and equip it with modern equipment. A larger Polish army is also an objective. Specifically, the eastern flank is to be strengthened with the formation of a new fourth division. The strengthening of the eastern flank is a measure to strengthen the capabilities of the Polish army, but it also represents a significant strengthening of NATO’s entire eastern flank,” emphasized the Minister. In the signed document, the “Harpia program” is the most important – the purchase of fifth-generation aircraft. Minister Blaszczak pointed out that new aircraft are essential equipment and the purchase is an absolute priority for the leadership of the Ministry of Defense. “I expect both the Chief of the General Staff and the Chief of the Armaments Inspectorate to take immediate action to accomplish this task. We want to buy 32 fifth-generation multirole aircraft,” he said.
The priority tasks of the modernization plan also include the “Narew” (purchase of short-range anti-aircraft missiles to combat unmanned aerial vehicles), “Kruk” (purchase of combat helicopters) and “Orka” (purchase of submarines) programmes. “We will also use them to rebuild the navy’s combat capabilities, and we also want to improve and modernize cyber security.” Minister Blaszczak continued: “I am very happy that Parliament and the President have accepted the extension of the planning perspective to 15 years. We are therefore already working on the technical modernization plan until 2034. This also includes increasing defense spending to 2.5 percent of gross domestic product by 2030.”
