Experts will examine the security of supply chains in the Polish defense industry – this is the result of a letter of intent signed during the Economic Forum in Karpacz. This is a joint initiative of the forum organizers, namely the Institute of Eastern Studies, the Ministry of National Defense, the Krakow University of Technology, the Warsaw School of Economics and the Military University of Technology. The issue of security of production and continuity of supplies to the defense sector will also be one of the priorities of the new European Commission term. – “Europe must be independent in the production of military equipment,” says Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense.
“COVID-19 has shown that there is a lack of security of supplies, e.g. semiconductors, active substances. We did not have access to this at the beginning of Covid, so if it was supposed to teach us something, not only in the health sector, it is that Europe must be independent, that the pharmaceutical industry must return here, that we must focus on the arms industry. This strategy, which the European Union has adopted for the next five years, for the new term of the European Commission – namely, focusing on the arms industry, appointing a commissioner for defense, but really for the development of the arms industry – this is a counteraction to the loss of the ability to supply semi-finished products, components for military equipment”- said Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz to journalists during the Economic Forum in Karpacz.
During the recent GLOBSEC Forum, which took place in Prague, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen talked about the progress that has been made in this context since the start of the war. Member states increased their defense spending from just over 200 billion euros before 2022 to almost 300 billion euros last year. Orders are increasing, production of equipment is accelerating, but – as the head of the European Commission stressed – this is only the first step, and the next will be a systemic overhaul of European defense. This will be dealt with by the new Commissioner for Defense.
“Europe must be independent in the production of military equipment. We attach particular importance to ammunition, the most needed, which is 155mm, and here Europe’s capabilities are insufficient. This showed at some point the inability to support Ukraine, so we need to rebuild this,” says the Deputy Prime Minister and head of the Ministry of National Defense.
As he emphasized during the Economic Forum in Karpacz, there are now declarations of at least three 155mm ammunition factories in Poland.
“This war also showed that in some cases, when it seems that supplies from our partners are constant, certain, safe, a situation may occur, as in the case of shells for German armored vehicles Marder. The Swiss, who supplied them with ammunition, were not ready to agree to the re-export of these shells to Ukraine,” says Zygmunt Berdychowski, Chairman of the Program Council of the Economic Forum in Karpacz.
Examples from the period of the war and COVID-19 are the reason why it was decided to examine the topic of security of supply chains in the Polish defense industry. The letter of intent signed in Karpacz is the beginning of work on a document that will compile recommendations for the sector. The aim of this initiative is to conduct a thorough analysis and identify key challenges and solutions that will increase the stability and resilience of the supply chain in the defense sector, which is important from the point of view of Poland’s strategic national security interests.
“The agreement signed by the Warsaw School of Economics, the Military University of Technology, the Krakow University of Technology, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Institute of Eastern Studies Foundation, assumes that we will jointly carry out activities aimed at preparing a report on the safety of supply chains in the defense industry. This challenge has arisen today primarily for this reason, that Europeans, Poles, Germans understood that the war in Ukraine brought immense challenges,” emphasizes Zygmunt Berdychowski.
“This report is to characterize the entire risk map, threats, but also to show what is going well, where it is simply necessary not to interfere in the supply chain for the defense industry. This is the last call and it’s a good thing that we are taking it on. It’s a pity that a few years earlier, right after the pandemic, someone didn’t order such a report,” says Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.
As the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized during the panel, building our own production capabilities is key today, because it is a kind of insurance policy within international alliances. Next year, Poland will allocate nearly 5% of GDP to defense spending, which is a record result among NATO countries. Among the priorities in building the country’s resilience in the coming years, the head of the Ministry of National Defense mentioned the program strengthening the eastern border of the country, operating under the name Shield East, to which 10 billion PLN will be allocated, the construction of drone troops, and the completion of the Orka submarine purchase program.
“Modernization and transformation of the army is outlined until 2035. This is a complex, difficult, ongoing process requiring time. Orders placed several years ago can be delivered now, orders placed now will be delivered in a few months, a few or several years. For example, we have been working on the Borsuk for 10 years, we worked on the Tick for 10 years. In the previous PO-PSL coalition we signed agreements for the creation of these vehicles, transporters, combat vehicles, and today we are only coming to finalize and order,” says Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, who also received the Man of the Year Economic Forum award in Karpacz. – “From day to day, Poland has better equipment, more of this equipment, more and better equipped with individual equipment Polish Army soldiers.”
The Economic Forum in Karpacz is the largest meeting platform in Central and Eastern Europe. This year, one of the dominant topics is security.
“During the Economic Forum, several dozen sessions and panels dedicated to defense, war in the East are held. This is an absolutely priority issue today, because it is about our safety. It is impossible to pretend that what is happening 200-300 km from our border may not affect us in a moment. Even if there are no clear signs that aggression on this part of Europe is possible, we must believe that it is possible in order to prepare for defense. Hence, so many and such different topics related to security. These are topics related directly to the conclusions coming from the war in Ukraine, or to the functioning of the North Atlantic Pact, or to the functioning of our defense industry,” lists Zygmunt Berdychowski.
