Morąg, only 37 miles from Poland’s border with Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, is where the U.S. installed PATRIOT Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in 2010, four years before the coup in Ukraine and the commencement of the war in Donbass. – RR
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Polish Radio
December 9, 2022
Poland in effort to boost army to counter Russian threat: PM
The Polish prime minister has said his country has made “an enormous effort” in recent years to strengthen and modernise its armed forces….
Mateusz Morawiecki made the remark at a ceremony to hand over the first batch of South Korean-made K2 Black Panther tanks to the Polish army….
Morawiecki told the gathering in the northern town of Morąg on Friday: “[W]e have made an enormous effort to strengthen and modernise the Polish army.”
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Morawiecki, who was accompanied in Morąg by Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak, said the government sought to make the Polish army “so strong, so well modernised with advanced equipment, that nobody even considers attacking us.”
He added that “Poland is safe, but we must reinforce our army month after month – and this is happening.”
The prime minister praised military cooperation with South Korea, stressing that “it brings multiple benefits.”
He described South Korean weapons as “compatible with NATO systems, reasonably priced and state-of-the-art.”
Moreover, the K2 Black Panther tanks will be partly produced in Poland, which means Polish arms makers will receive the know-how, Morawiecki said.
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Poland has so far agreed to buy a total of 180 K2 tanks from South Korean arms maker Hyundai Rotem in a deal worth USD 3.37 billion. They are due to be delivered between 2022 and 2025, according to officials.
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The First News
December 12, 2022
Purchasing South Korean military equipment Poland buys know-how says PM
Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland’s prime minister, has said that the purchases of South Korean military equipment have been accompanied by the acquisition of know-how.
The first K2 tanks and 24 K9 self-propelled howitzers arrived in Poland on Tuesday under a contract signed with Hyundai Rotem in July for a total of 1,000 K2 tanks and the Polonised K2PL version of the tank along with support vehicles, a training and logistics package, spare ammunition and technical support.
“Cooperation with South Korea is very beneficial, as along with South Korean military equipment Poland has also been purchasing know-how,” Morawiecki said at a ceremony during which first K2 South Korean tanks were handed over to Polish soldiers in the city of Morąg, northern Poland.
First South Korean tanks arrive in Morąg, 60 kilometers from Russian border. Photo: Polish Press Agency.
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Polish Radio
December 9, 2022
Polish FM, US state secretary to meet in Washington
Poland’s foreign minister is set to meet with the US secretary of state on Friday to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and further support for Kyiv, among other topics.
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During the briefing, Jasina was asked if there was a chance that American military presence in Poland would be boosted, after Congress asked for further deployment of US forces to NATO’s eastern flank in a draft 2023 defence policy bill.
Jasina said: “I believe there is a huge chance that NATO’s eastern flank will be further strengthened.”
Anti-bellum 