Poland to plough billions into military upgrade
PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk
28.02.2019 16:20
Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak said on Thursday he has signed off on plans to plough billions into Poland’s armed forces, adding that he aimed to bolster NATO’s eastern flank.
Mariusz Błaszczak (right). Photo: PAP/Jakub Kamiński
Under the Armed Forces Technical Modernisation Plan, PLN 185 billion (EUR 43 bn, USD 49 bn) will be earmarked until 2026 for upgrading the Polish military.
Błaszczak said that modern equipment would be used to strengthen the country’s eastern border, which lies on the eastern flank of the NATO military alliance.
Amid fears of Russian aggression following Moscow's annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine in 2014, NATO decided at a Warsaw summit in July 2016 to deploy four rotating multinational battalions to Poland and the Baltic states.
Błaszczak said on Monday he had no doubts that the United States would step up its military presence in Poland.
Poland has been a member of NATO since 1999.
(pk)
Source: PAP