Prime Minister at Huta Stalowa Wola: safety is our top priority
09.06.2022
Keeping Poles safe is a priority for Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki's government. This is particularly important now, when Russia's brutal attack on Ukraine continues across our eastern border. It is crucial that our army becomes stronger and better equipped. This will be possible thanks to the adopted the Act on the Defence of the Homeland. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who visited Huta Stalowa Wola, spoke about the assumptions of the document and the prospects of the Polish arms industry. It is a leading manufacturer of military equipment, which will soon supply armaments to the fighting Ukraine. This will be one of the largest arms export contracts of the Polish manufacturer.
The Act on the defence of the Homeland - larger and better equipped army
On 18 March 2022, President Andrzej Duda signed the Act on the Defence of the Homeland. It is an unprecedented document developed within the framework of the Committee on National Security and Defence Affairs - in close cooperation with the military community.
The new act comprehensively organizes regulations concerning the Polish Armed Forces. It replaces over a dozen legal acts, including, among others, the Act of 21 November 1967 on the Universal Obligation to Defend the Republic of Poland. The act is, however, primarily a response to the difficult situation in our region, which is caused by Russia's aggression against Ukraine.
The document is based on three main pillars. These are an increase in funding for the Armed Forces, the introduction of universal defence and an increase in the size of the Polish Army. The assumptions are already being implemented. On June 6 in Węgorzewo, Minister Mariusz Blaszczak inaugurated the first training of volunteers for voluntary basic military service.
Equipment for fighting Ukraine
For over 100 days, Ukraine has faced brutal aggression from Russia. Poland has supported its eastern neighbour from the very beginning. This is humanitarian help, but also military support.
During a visit to Stalowa Wola, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said: "We have just signed one of the largest, if not the largest, arms export contract of the last thirty years. It is a sale of arms to the Ukrainians, weapons that are tried and tested very extensively. It will be a weapon that will not only undergo a baptism by fire, but we already know today that it will be a very important weapon on the battlefield, most likely in eastern Ukraine”.
As the head of government emphasised, Ukraine receives funds for this purpose partly from the European Union, and partly the cost of purchasing the weapons will be covered from its own budget. Poland will be able to use the money from the contract to enrich its production potential: through our research, development and Polish technical ideas.
