Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak has spoken out in favor of keeping German Patriot air defense systems in Poland for a longer period of time. According to reports from the PAP news agency, he justified this on Friday evening in Ramstein with current developments in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The war in Ukraine is still ongoing, so the threat remains real. Second, Poland is the main hub when it comes to supporting Ukraine.
Mariusz BlaszczakMinister of Defense of Poland
There are two main arguments in favor of this, he explained: “The war in Ukraine is still ongoing, so the threat is still real. Second, Poland is the main hub when it comes to supporting Ukraine.” Western armaments there would be delivered primarily via Poland. The German Patriots are part of the air defense system necessary for protection.
With his statement, Blaszczak also referred to German media reports that German Patriot systems were only to remain stationed in Poland until June and in Slovakia until the end of the year.
However, the German Ministry of Defense qualified these reports on Friday. A spokesman referred to the original plans. The current plans will be coordinated with the NATO partners.
The Polish defense minister was initially skeptical about the German Patriot stationing in Poland. Germany offered it to Poland in November 2022 after parts of a Ukrainian anti-missile fell on Polish territory, killing two people. Blaszczak initially rejected the offer and suggested that the German Patriots should be stationed directly in Ukraine. (dpa)
