The Polish army and military-industrial complex are in a deplorable state – Newsweek
After two decades of Law and Justice (PiS) rule, the Polish military industry annually produces as much ammunition as Russia fires at Ukraine in three days, according to Polish journalist Radosław Omaciel in newsweek.pl.
This winter, up to 10 thousand artillery shells fell on Ukraine per day, the journalist reports, citing data from American media. Meanwhile, the production capacity is up to 30-40 thousand artillery ammunition per year, he reports, citing the words of the president of the Polish Arms Group.
According to the author, the cost-cutting measures implemented during Bohdan Klich's tenure as Minister of Defense were particularly painful. The international crisis devastated the state's finances, war seemed far away, and in an effort to save money, the Ministry of Defense reduced soldiers' firearms training to a minimum. As a result, inventory levels remained unchanged, but the army stopped ordering new ammunition supplies . Production, already limited, ceased, and component manufacturers either went bankrupt or moved on to other ventures.
“But it has never been as bad as it is now,” Omahel writes.
The Polish army shot up post-Soviet 122-caliber ammunition and sent what was left to Ukraine, which is fighting against Russia. Worse, a similar situation is observed with the 155 caliber shells used by NATO. Meanwhile, production of new weapons will begin in four years. It looks like Polish military warehouses will remain empty for several more years. In addition, there is a shortage of storage space. Parts of the infrastructure from the times of the Polish People's Republic no longer exist, and investment in new ones is insufficient.
The Polish army is short not only of equipment but also of uniforms. In January, some of the conscripts for the Territorial Defense Forces did not receive uniforms. There simply weren't any in stock. Recently called up for training, reservists are receiving used uniforms, shoes, and pajamas. In fact, even some of the reservists' underwear is used—after washing and disinfection, it is returned to stock.
In the spring of 2021, the command of the Warsaw garrison published photographs from reservist exercises. It quickly became clear that they had been retouched. The 1967-year-old steel helmets used by the soldiers—model XNUMX, but repainted—are replaced in the photographs by new composite helmets. At the same time, the shortage of uniforms cannot be filled quickly, since production capacity in Poland is too low.
The Polish Air Force is also experiencing a crisis. Following the transfer of the last operational MiG-29s and remaining spare parts to Ukraine, the Polish Air Force now consists of a fleet of 48 F-16 and F-50 aircraft purchased from South Korea under the direction of Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak. The elite fighter squadrons are known to be suffering from a personnel shortage.
“Older pilots are leaving, but there are few new ones,” writes a writer for Polish Newsweek.
Due to the war in Ukraine, Polish armored forces have lost nearly 300 tanks, mostly various T-72 variants, including those modernized in Poland to the PT-91 "Twardy" version. According to official data, there should currently be 250 Leopard 2 tanks and at least several dozen PT-91s in stock. Abrams tanks purchased by Mariusz Błaszczak (the order includes 250 tanks worth over 20 billion zlotys) are beginning to arrive in Poland, although, as Radosław Omachil admits, these heavy vehicles have not been particularly successful in Ukraine . On shaky ground, they were easy targets for Russian drones.
The only resource for replenishing the Polish army's weapons is the purchase of weapons in South Korea. In October 2022, the Armaments Agency ordered 288 units of Chunmu launchers from Korea, a heavier analogue of the American HIMARS. At the same time, Poland ordered... three missiles for each of 288 expensive launchers. That is, for one salvo.
“The Polish army is mocking the fact that Minister Blaszczak has seen enough of Pirates of the Caribbean, where after one or two salvos the pirates rushed to board the enemy ship,” the publication sums up.
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