The US State Department will sell Poland a $15 billion Patriot air defense system. Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak announced on his social media account that the US State Department approved the sale of the Patriot air defense system to Poland. Minister Blaszczak delivered 48 Patriot M903 Missile Launch Pads, 644 Patriot PAC-3 MSE Missiles, 48 Launcher Interface Patch Kits (LINK), 12 Sublayer Air and Missile Defense Sensors (LTAMDS), 12 LTPS energy supply systems and reported that the cost of the sale, which included many equipment, was $15 billion.
Blaszczak, who stated that the sale of 15 billion dollars in question is extremely important in terms of strengthening the Polish air defense system, said that they are waiting for the approval of the US Congress as the next step.
LARGEST ARMS SALE AGREEMENT
The $15 billion arms sales package will be the largest arms contract in Polish history. The highest-valued contract Poland has signed to date is known as the $4.75 billion contract, which it signed with the United States in 2018, including 208 Patriot missiles and 16 mobile missile launchers.
THEY AIM TO BE THE ‘STRONGEST ARMY’
Poland, which has invested heavily in the defense industry for the last two years and signed arms supply agreements with countries such as South Korea and the USA, aims to become one of the strongest armies in Europe. Military expenditures of the Warsaw administration are expected to be 130 billion zloty (27.7 billion euros) by the end of this year. The country is projected to spend a total of 524 billion zloty (117.6 billion euro) on military spending by 2035.
“KREMLIN CANNOT ATTACK US”
Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said in a statement in July 2022, “The Kremlin will not attack a strong person. If they see a weak spot, they will attack. When it comes to artillery and armored units, there will be no stronger country than Poland in Europe. Among the NATO countries in Europe We will have the strongest ground forces.” had used the words.
THEY HAVE AGREEMENT FOR A LOT OF TANKS
After Russia attacked Ukraine last year, reports began to appear in the Polish media about whether the country was in danger. On April 5, 2022, a few weeks after the start of the war, the Warsaw administration signed an agreement worth about 5 billion euros to purchase 250 American Abrams tanks. Polish authorities signed another agreement in July 2022 to buy 1000 K2 Black Panther tanks and 672 K9 Thunder howitzers from South Korea. Poland, which signed an agreement with the USA for 96 Apache helicopters in September 2022, took delivery of 8 of them last month. Poland reached an agreement with South Korea to purchase 218 K239 Chunmoo rocket launchers in November 2022.
THEY STRENGTHEN THE NAVAL FORCES
Poland, which has a coastline on the Baltic Sea partially bordering Russia, has recently taken action to strengthen its naval forces. On March 4, 2022, a few days after the war in Ukraine broke out, Poland signed a £1.4 billion (€1.65 billion) deal with British arms manufacturer Babcock for 3 new frigates. The warships to be built in Poland and called the Miecznik class will be similar versions of the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigates.
Defense Minister Blaszczak, in his statement on May 24, stated that they have taken intensive steps to strengthen the army and stated that he will launch the submarine purchase program within this scope within the year. The Polish army also aims to increase its recruitment. It is aimed to increase the number of soldiers, which was 150 thousand last year, to at least 300 thousand by 2035. In the country where compulsory military service was abolished in 2008, 16,000 new recruits enlisted in the army last year alone. This was recorded as the largest annual increase since 2008. (UAV-AA)