Polish military. Credit: Artur Widak/NurPhoto/Shutterstock Editorial/Profimedia
Poland plans to complete a new set of anti-drone fortifications along its eastern borders within two years, the deputy defense minister announced, in the wake of Russian drone incursions into Polish airspace this year.
“We expect to have the first capabilities of the system in about six months, maybe even sooner. And the completion of the whole system will take 24 months,” Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk told The Guardian in an interview in Warsaw.
He explained that the new air defense systems will be integrated into a defense line built a decade ago. The project will involve multiple levels of defense, including machine guns, cannons, missiles and drone jamming systems.
“Some of these are only intended for use in extreme or wartime conditions. For example, these multi-barrel machine guns are difficult to use in peacetime because everything that goes up has to come down,” he said.
Several Russian drones entered Polish airspace in September, prompting authorities to close airports, raise fighter jets from the ground and shoot down the drones.
Since then, Poland has updated its already underway plans to strengthen its eastern borders.
The anti-drone fortifications, a 2 billion euro project
The project will cost over 2 billion euros and will be financed through the SAFE program, but also from the state budget, Tomczyk said.
The official said logistics centers would be set up in every Polish municipality in the border area and that equipment to help with a possible border blockade would be stored there, ready to be deployed in just a few hours.
“The truth is that as long as Ukraine defends itself and fights against Russia, Europe is not at risk of war in the conventional, strict sense of the word. Instead, we will face provocations and acts of sabotage,” the Polish deputy defense minister also said. However, if the West allows Russia to win in Ukraine, it won't be long before the Kremlin turns its attention to Europe, Tomczyk warned.
