The inflow of funding for the modernisation of the Polish Armed Forces represents a major opportunity for the private sector — and, importantly, not only for the defence industry, but also for the technology sector, experts from the Security and Defence Platform of the Employers of Poland organisation say. In this way, domestic companies will gain greater opportunities to expand their operations and build export capabilities. At the same time, involving private technology firms in the entire process could increase the innovativeness of Poland’s defence industry.
“Participation in the technical modernisation of the Polish Armed Forces offers Poland’s private defence and aerospace sector, first of all, enormous growth opportunities and, secondly, a chance to become part of the supply chains of European, international and major Polish companies, such as those from the Polish Armaments Group,” Tomasz Zakrzewski, Chairman of the Security and Defence Platform at Employers of Poland, told Newseria.
The private sector sees its opportunity in increased defence funding. This includes the EU SAFE loan programme, from which Poland is expected to obtain around €43 billion. At the end of February, the Entrepreneurship Council, which brings together nine employers’ and business organisations in Poland, supported the entry into force of the Act on the Financial Instrument for Increasing Security SAFE in a letter to President Karol Nawrocki. On 12 March, however, the president announced that he had vetoed the act. According to government statements, Poland will use the funds despite the veto. In mid-March, the government adopted a special resolution authorising the Minister of National Defence and the Minister of Finance and Economy to sign the SAFE agreement and implement the Armed Poland programme. According to official announcements, the vast majority of the funds — 89% — are to go to Polish industry.
The head of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration has assured that, under the Armed Poland initiative, the investments for the Police, the Border Guard and the State Protection Service originally planned under SAFE will also be carried out, despite the more difficult procedural path. These include the purchase of drone detection and neutralisation systems, light armoured personnel carriers, and modern AI-based ICT tools, as well as radars, armed vessels and helicopters to strengthen border surveillance, along with mobile shelters and systems for detecting and blocking hostile radio transmissions.
“The SAFE programme offers many opportunities for both sides. It is an excellent financial instrument for the Polish Armed Forces, which are continuously replacing old Soviet-era equipment with the most advanced equipment in the world, and it may also in some way ease the burden on the budget of the Polish Ministry of National Defence. The private defence sector is already involved in this process and would like to be even more involved, so the opportunities for further cooperation are considerable,” Tomasz Zakrzewski says.
Experts from the Security and Defence Platform believe that, for Poland, SAFE funds could become the biggest development impulse for the defence sector since the country joined NATO. This is not only about the scale of the additional financing, but also about the preferential treatment of European industry. As Małgorzata Sokołowska, Secretary of the platform, stressed in her analysis published in the March issue of the Employers of Poland Monthly, arms procurement to date has largely been based on imports of ready-made systems, while SAFE creates conditions for production and technological investments to be carried out in Poland. Proper use of this pool of funds could allow Poland to move from a procurement model based on purchases to one based on its own industrial capabilities. According to the expert, this will also create opportunities for technological development, especially in areas such as unmanned systems, military electronics and software.
“Poland has a dynamically developing private sector in digital technologies and automation, which could be incorporated into defence projects financed under SAFE. The inclusion of technology firms in the defence sector could significantly increase the innovativeness of Polish arms manufacturing, which has traditionally been dominated by large state-owned enterprises. The development of dual-use technologies, especially in areas such as autonomous combat systems, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, could bring effects that go far beyond the defence sector,” Małgorzata Sokołowska emphasised in her analysis.
“It would be difficult to determine exactly how many private-sector companies could take part in this. Of course, all those with the relevant competencies could be involved — companies producing not only military equipment and weaponry, but also dual-use technologies, ICT companies, and manufacturing firms. The portfolio is very broad,” says Tomasz Zakrzewski.
As he stresses, this opportunity created by the inflow of funds must be used not only for the equipment modernisation of the armed forces, but also to build new export capabilities for Polish industry.
“It is very important that Polish defence-sector companies, while supplying various systems and products to the Polish Armed Forces, the Police and the Border Guard, should simultaneously think about building export capabilities. If we build factories, buy machines, train personnel and produce only enough equipment to supply the Polish Armed Forces on an ongoing basis, then in a few years we will face a problem,” the Chairman of the Security and Defence Platform at Employers of Poland points out.
