Poland is set to establish a national drone defense system within the coming months, without waiting for the European Union's "drone wall" initiative to be implemented. This was announced by Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland, Cezary Tomczyk, in an interview with Bloomberg.
Tomczyk stated that the ministry will unveil investments in technologies for detecting, jamming, and neutralizing enemy drones as part of a broader air defense program. While he did not disclose the cost of these investments, the goal is for Polish companies to secure at least half of the contracts.
“We agree with the idea of strengthening air defense across the European Union and are open to external proposals or solutions. However, we prioritize national projects,” Tomczyk said.
He mentioned that the EU's “drone wall” could “supplement” the Polish system in the future. “If there are any external tools available, we will utilize them to the fullest extent,” the deputy minister added.
Tomczyk noted that the ministry plans to use the new EU SAFE defense credit program to fund the country's drone shield, but he declined to provide further details. Given Poland's borders with Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine, it received the largest initial allocation under the SAFE program, allowing it to secure €43.7 billion in funding.
The government aims for the first new capabilities to be operational within three months of the announcement, with the entire drone countermeasure system to be completed within two years.
“The weapon against drones must be comprehensive. It should consist of various sensors and effectors that operate simultaneously, first detecting and identifying objects, and then neutralizing them,” Tomczyk stated.
He added that the new initiatives against drones will become “another layer” of the country's air defense network, alongside the already deployed long-range and medium-range systems. All of these elements are designed to protect against a wide range of aerial threats, including aircraft, helicopters, drones, and cruise missiles.