Polish soldiers completed their mission in Afghanistan
28.08.2021
“Thank you for your professionalism - we can say that it is professionalism of the highest level. You have undertaken a challenging mission, but you have already been on more than one such difficult mission. (...) I would like to thank the soldiers of the Special Forces, soldiers of the special forces unit “Grom”, who took care of the safety of the entire evacuation mission. I would like to thank the pilots who made the mission a success. The airlift was created. As a result, people who were then transported to our country using civilian aircrafts from LOT(Polish Airlines) planes were evacuated. This is a challenging project. It was demanding professionalism, requiring commitment on the part of Polish soldiers, and so it was. I would also like to thank the aviation technicians who made sure that the entire mission was successful "- with these words Mariusz Błaszczak, the Minister of National Defense, thanked the Polish soldiers who took part in the mission in Afghanistan.
On Friday, August 27, soldiers who had participated in the evacuation of Afghan citizens in recent weeks returned to Poland. Mariusz Błaszczak, the Minister of National Defense, met with them at the airport in Warsaw.
“You evacuated the citizens of our country, you evacuated the Afghans - our friends with whom we cooperated when Poland participated in the mission in Afghanistan. (...) You also evacuated the co-workers of our allies, hence the thanks from the NATO Secretary General, from the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Lithuania, ”said the head of the Ministry of National Defense, summing up the Poles' mission in Afghanistan.
The Polish army had already taken care of the safety of its co-workers in Afghanistan. Practically by the end of June, with the end of our mission in Afghanistan, we evacuated all Afghan collaborators (along with their families) who were then interested in leaving. After the deterioration of the situation in Afghanistan, more people who were concerned about their safety came forward.
The head of the Ministry of National Defense emphasized that it was the professionalism of Polish soldiers that guaranteed our and allied security. “You are well trained, you show the right attitude, high morale, you serve Poland. Because this service is service to Poland. In this way, we care for the security of our homeland. It can be said far beyond the borders of our country, but it is so. This is a service for Poland, ”said Minister Blaszczak.
About 1,300 people were safely evacuated from Afghanistan to Poland, of which almost 1,000 went to Warsaw. The other people are co-workers of allied states or employees of international institutions who have asked Poland for help. The evacuation mission lasted over a week.
The Ministry of National Defense and the Polish Army closely cooperated with Polish diplomats. Four military planes (Hercules and Casa) made 30 flights on the Navoi route in Uzbekistan to Kabul and back. The evacuees from Uzbekistan were taken to Poland by civilian planes.
Ministry of National Defence
