Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Poland Mariusz Błaszczak handed soldiers of the 18th Anti-Aircraft Regiment the certificates attesting that they had completed a course on operating the "Small Narew" system elements. "We are finalising another stage of Polish-British cooperation, which means strengthening of Polish Armed Forces, as well as of the resilience of the whole eastern flank," he said during the official ceremony in Zamość. The event was also attended by British Secretary of Defence Ben Wallace, who said: "As we face the threat from Russia, we need the equipment and the capabilities to safeguard our people and preserve European stability".
At the Zamość Military Base in Poland today, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak signed an Air Defence Complex Weapons Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
This enables the UK and Poland to cooperate in the development and manufacture of current and future complex weapons, further strengthening the relationship built through the Defence and Security Cooperation Treaty (2017) and deepening the interoperability of our Armed Forces.
The Ministers also signed the Arrowhead-140 Statement of Intent which provides a framework for the UK Government and The Government of Poland to collaborate on the procurement and operation of three Arrowhead-140 frigates. The Polish Frigates will be a variant of the Arrowhead-140.
"The lessons of what we’re seeing in Ukraine is that without good air defence you can have as many tanks and armoured vehicles as you like, but you are deeply vulnerable from everything, from drones to aircraft. That’s why both Poland and the United Kingdom are investing at the same time in a new generation of air defence capabilities," British Defence Secretary said during the ceremony in Zamość.
"We have had a close defence alliance with Poland for over 150 years and as we face the threat from Russia, we need the equipment and the capabilities to safeguard our people and preserve European stability," he added.
"Our new agreements demonstrate that commitment and the UK’s support for Poland’s defence modernisation plans," Wallace said.
During his trip to Poland, the Defence Secretary also attended the Warsaw Security Forum where he took part in the future of the Transatlantic Alliance panel discussion. At the event, Ben Wallace spoke with TVN24 reporter Jan Niedziałek.
WATCH FULL CONVERSATION BETWEEN TVN24'S JAN NIEDZIAŁEK AND UK SECRETARY OF DEFENCE BEN WALLACE
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, TVN24, gov.uk