Warsaw launches the biggest rearmament campaign in 50 years because of Russian threats. The military has already placed orders for 1,000 tanks from South Korea and 250 new Abrams from the US.
The Polish authorities are determined to create the largest ground forces in Europe against the backdrop of constant military threats to Russia. This is reported by the British newspaper The Telegraph.
Warsaw will spend 4% of GDP on defense in 2023, which is 2 times more than the NATO bloc requires. Poland began the modernization of the armed forces with a large amount of equipment from the times of the USSR, the Poles concluded part of the deals for the supply of new equipment before the big war in Ukraine, the publication noted.
Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has accelerated the process and prompted the signing of many new contracts. It is extremely important for Poland to quickly create a strong army in order to deter any potential aggressor from attacks, said Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak.
What weapons will Poland buy?
The material states that Poland has placed orders for 1,000 K2 tanks from South Korea and 250 new M1A2 SEP V3 Abrams tanks from the United States. Poland will become the owner of the largest tank grouping in Europe. The UK only has 227 tanks.
Polish artillery will be reinforced by 600 South Korean self-propelled guns K9 Thunder
The artillery will be reinforced by 600 South Korean 155-mm K9 Thunder self-propelled guns, 18 HIMARS installations with 9 thousand missiles and 288 K239 Chunmoo systems from South Korea.
More than 1,000 Polish-made Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles will be used in battles on the fronts, and 96 AH-64E Apache helicopters from the United States and 48 FA-50 aircraft from South Korea will provide air cover.
All this will be supported by plans to double the size of the Polish army to 300 thousand people, which will turn Poland into the largest military power in Europe in terms of manpower.
The military command is negotiating with Britain on the construction of a large arms factory. Its tasks will include assistance in the production and repair of equipment and weapons for Ukraine, the newspaper reported.
Captain Marek Adamiak of Poland’s 11th Artillery Regiment told The Telegraph that his unit received 24 South Korean-made K9 self-propelled howitzers in mid-December 2022, capable of hitting targets up to 34 miles away.
“We can maneuver better, shoot from anywhere. There is no place where we can’t shoot. We had a lot of old artillery, but now we have got very new weapons,” he said.
Poland’s defense spending: will the country’s budget withstand?
Poland plans to spend more than $100 billion on armaments by 2035. The country’s defense budget in 2023 will be a record $21.7 billion.
Defense expert and vice president of Res Publica-Visegrad Insight Magdalena Jakubovska told reporters that this level of spending is not without risks.
“I’m afraid that all this spending can devastate the budget if not managed properly. The public is not aware that some civilian projects may have to be cut. We have had stable economic growth over the past few years, but now we are close to a recession. If we don’t boost the economy with EU money (from the pandemic recovery fund), which we still don’t have, the situation could become critical,” she said.
To help Poland, the US Congress approved $288.6 million in military funding in 2022 to defend against the increased threat from Russia. Inflation in Poland is currently at 17%, so it may be difficult for the country to maintain such a high defense budget.
“Because the war may be just around the corner, the Poles understand that something must be sacrificed in order to take care of the national interests. If people are afraid of war, then they understand,” Jakubowska added.
Recall that Slovakia and Poland are ready to transfer MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine. The Polish army has 28 of these fighters.
Poland is also planning, with the help of German partners, to solve the problem of the shortage of spare parts for Leopard 2 tanks intended for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
