Poland….
On the other side of the Ukraine and bordering Belarus has moved to spend a LOT of money increasing it’s countries Defense assets…
They have been a solid partner with NATO and America since it left the embrace of the Soviet Union…
They are aware that like the Ukraine and other countries?
The Russian President would like nothing better then rebuilding that Soviet Union by subterfuge or force….
For Lt. Gen. Wieslaw Kukuła, Poland’s military support for Ukraine isn’t just a matter of national security, but a golden chance to learn about the future of war.
“We never had such an opportunity to gather intelligence and data and really quickly translate that” into military lessons, said Kukuła, who heads the country’s Armed Forces General Command, responsible for training and equipping Poland’s rapidly growing army.
Poland’s key role in supporting Ukraine comes with a catch: it’s also in Russia’s cross-hairs. Officials say disinformation is on the rise since the invasion, and that Moscow is using novel espionage tactics to build networks of spies on Polish soil.
Poland, which was already a NATO and EU leader in defense spending by GDP, has upped its commitment in the past two years. Shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion, Warsaw said it would seek to double the Polish Army’s size to 300,000 soldiers over five years. This year, the Polish government has said it will raise its defense budget to 4 percent of gross domestic product, more than double NATO’s 2-percent target.
Poland has also been on a buying spree, purchasing 980 K2 tanks and 648 self-propelled howitzers K2, and 48 FA-50 fighter jets from Korea last year. Poland also intends to buy 366 U.S.-made Abrams tanks, as well as 96 Apache helicopters.
Although Poland’s re-armament campaign comes amid inflation of more than 10 percent, its government sees it as a necessity.
“Of course, we would like to spend it on hospitals, education, and development,” said Minister Jacek Siewierą, who heads the National Security Bureau, an agency under the office of the Polish president. “We are forced to spend this 4 percent of GDP on defense because we are facing the biggest threat in Europe since the Second World War.”….