Poland aims to build europe’s strongest Ground Army in Two Years, Says Defense Minister Błaszczak

Within two years, Poland will have the strongest ground army in Europe, announced Minister of National Defense Mariusz Błaszczak, emphasizing that “the sole guarantor of continuing this process is the PiS party”

The Border Guard has approached the Ministry of National Defense to increase the number of soldiers guarding the Belarus border by a thousand individuals. This request comes in the context of the violation of Polish airspace by two Belarusian helicopters, Belarusian military exercises near the Polish border that began this week, and the presence of mercenaries under Evgeny Prigozhin in Belarus. According to information provided by Prigozhin himself, they are estimated to be seven thousand.

In recent months, Poland has also seen an increase in the number of migrants, mainly from the Middle East and Africa, attempting to cross the border from Belarus.

Poland’s Deputy Minister of Interior, Maciej Wasik, shared information about the increased number of troops at the border, stating that a thousand soldiers will be sent there. The decision to send two thousand soldiers was made by the Security Committee and Minister of Defense Mariusz Błaszczak.

Błaszczak announced on Program 1 of Polish Radio that the number of soldiers at the Polish-Belarusian border “will be approximately the same as it was before, when that attack took place in 2021.”

We’re talking about approximately 10,000 soldiers – 4,000 of them will be directly involved in the operations supporting the Border Guard at the border, and 6,000 will be in reserve – he explained, adding that they will be “soldiers who will improve their skills in garrisons reestablished in the east of the country by the PiS government.”

Błaszczak also stated that “within two years, we will have the strongest ground army in Europe,” provided that the process of strengthening the armed forces continues. According to him, the sole guarantor of continuing this process is the PiS party. He argued that it is better to invest in the Polish Army than in foreign forces.