First tanks and howitzers from South Korea arrived in Gdynia

This is the first batch of arms from South Korea to be delivered under contracts signed in recent months.

The contracts were part of South Korea's biggest ever arms deal as Poland has been seeking to beef up its military in the face of Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

Poland agreed to buy 180 K2 tanks, an unspecified number of howitzers and 48 FA-50 fighter jets under the deal.

The value of the entire deal has not been announced, however, South Korean media estimated it to be worth up to 20 trillion won ($15 billion).

Speaking at the unloading ceremony, president Andrzej Duda drew attention to the speed with which the weapons had been delivered, saying that a law on homeland defence had been adopted in the spring and a contract for the equipment signed in the summer.

"And now the process of modernising and strengthening the Polish army is physically occurring, not only through procurements but above all by the delivery from South Korea of K2 tanks and K9 howitzers for the Polish Army," Duda said.

"The first 10 tanks have just arrived in our country, here in Gdynia," the president said. "In a moment they will go to military units where they will undergo the final process of preparation and implementation for their use by our armed forces."

President Duda added that the rapid delivery of the hardware was needed given what was happening in Ukraine.

"For months, since February 24, since Russia invaded Ukraine, we have all clearly seen one thing – that only the heroism of a soldier equipped with modern, effective weaponry is in a position to halt Russian imperial ambition and Russian brutality," he said.

"To prevent aggression, to halt the enemy, the possession of this equipment by the army is necessary," Andrzej Duda continued. "Today this weaponry - super–modern for the Polish Army - to equip Polish soldiers, has become a fact, it has become part of the equipment of the Polish Armed Forces."

The Ukraine invasion, which Russia calls a "special military operation," has raised security fears among many former Eastern Bloc countries.

NATO member Poland has vowed to boost military spending to 3% of gross domestic product and more than double the size of its army to deter any attacks.