Tag: POLAND

Categories
-Top News USA

US greenlights Apache Helicopter sale to poland worth $12 bn

Boeing and Lockheed Martin have been named the principal contractors for the weapons…reports Asian Lite News

The US Department of State has approved the potential sale of Apache attack helicopters and related equipment to Poland for an estimated value of $12 billion, the Department of Defense said

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), an arm of the Pentagon responsible for providing military assistance to US allies, said in a statement that it “delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale” in light of the State Department’s determination, reports Xinhua news agency.

According to the DSCA, Poland has requested 96 Apache attack helicopters and related equipment, including 1,844 Hellfire missiles and 508 Stinger missiles, from the US.

Boeing and Lockheed Martin have been named the principal contractors for the weapons.

Despite the approval by the State Department, the DSCA’s notification to Congress does not guarantee the sale, nor does it indicate that a contract with the manufacturers has been signed, according to media reports.

Bordering Ukraine to the east, Poland has made boosting its national defense a priority since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022. 

ALSO READ-Biden may meet MBS at G20 meet

Categories
-Top News Europe

Belarus denies claims of Wagner fighters moving to Poland’s border

Thousands of Wagner troops are reportedly in Belarus following a failed military uprising in Russia…reports Asian Lite News

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday refuted Poland’s claim that nearly 100 troops from Wagner mercenaries have moved to a thin strip of land between Poland and Lithuania, CNN reported citing the statement released by the President’s Office.

“I suddenly hear the other day that Poland has freaked out that allegedly some units as large as 100 people are moving here. No PMC Wagner units 100 people strong have moved here. And if they have, they did it only in order to pass on combat experience to the brigades, which are stationed in Brest and Grodno,” Lukashenko said during a working visit to Kamenets District, in the southwestern Brest region, according to the statement. After Belarus signed a deal with Russia to formalise the deployment the tactical nuclear missiles, the former country wanted to train its military from the Wagner.

“I need to train my own military personnel because an army that doesn’t fight is half an army,” Lukashenko added according to the statement. “So they [Wagner] are here to pass on their experience.”

Earlier, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, on July 29, claimed that over 100 troops from the Russian mercenary group, Wagner, are moving towards a thin strip of land between Poland and Lithuania.

The Poland PM said that his government had received information that Wagner mercenaries went near the Grodno, a city in western Belarus close to the land, which is also known as the Suwalki gap or corridor, according to CNN.

Thousands of Wagner troops are reportedly in Belarus following a failed military uprising in Russia.

Morawiecki alleged that Belarus, a key ally to Russia, has been sending migrants westward in an attempt to overwhelm Polish border forces. And till now, this year, around 16,000 attempts were made by migrants to cross the border illegally, he added.

The troop movements, Morawiecki added, appeared to be another element in this campaign to destabilize the border, according to CNN.

“They will probably be disguised as Belarusian border guards and will help illegal immigrants to enter Polish territory, destabilize Poland, but they will also probably try to infiltrate Poland pretending to be illegal immigrants and this creates additional risks,” he said, according to CNN.

These claims came as the Belarusian defence ministry, last month, said the country’s forces will hold joint military exercises with Wagner fighters near its border with the NATO member.

Wagner fighters have arrived in Belarus following a short-lived mutiny by the private military group in June, reported CNN. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Belarusian President has a job for Wagner mercenaries

Categories
-Top News Europe

Poland delivers MiG-29 fighter aircraft to Ukraine

In March, Ukraine received its first British main battle Challenger tanks and other Western-made armoured vehicles, CNN reported citing Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov…reports Asian Lite News

Poland has delivered “several” MiG-29 fighter aircraft to Ukraine, the Polish President’s foreign affairs adviser Marcin Przydacz said in an interview with Polish radio RMF FM, CNN reported.

Earlier on March 16, Poland said that Warsaw will send the aircraft, which were about to be decommissioned by the country’s air force, as per the news report. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to visit Poland on Wednesday, according to Przydacz.

Poland announced it would send the aircraft, which were about to be decommissioned by the country’s air force, on March 16. At that time, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that Poland is still using Mi-29 aircraft in the defence of Polish airspace.

Duda said that Poland can announce with confidence that Warsaw will send MiGs to Ukraine. At the time, he said, “When it comes to the MI-29 aircraft, which are still operating in the defence of Polish airspace, a decision has been taken at the highest levels, we can say confidently that we are sending MiGs to Ukraine,” according to CNN report.

Andrzej Duda further said, “We have a dozen or so MiGs that we got in the ’90s handed down from the German Democratic Republic and they are functional and play a part in the defence of our airspace. They are at the end of their operational life but are still functional.”

He announced that Poland will replace them with deliveries of “south Korean FA-50s and American F-35s.” Ukraine has been urging its allies to provide them with deliveries of fighter jets. So far, only Poland and Slovakia have promised to provide 13 MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine.

In March, Ukraine received its first British main battle Challenger tanks and other Western-made armoured vehicles, CNN reported citing Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov.

In a Facebook post, Reznikov said that Ukraine received Challengers (main battle tanks) from the United Kingdom, Strykers (infantry fighting vehicles) and Cougars (infantry mobility vehicles from the mine-resistant ambush-protected family) from the United States, and Marders (infantry fighting vehicles) from Germany, according to CNN report.

Amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy while expressing gratitude to Ukraine’s security personnel called the situation near Bakhmut “extremely hot,” according to the statement released by Ukraine President’s office.

While making a video address on April 3, Zelenskyy said that next week will be especially important for Ukraine’s defence and added that they are already making preparations for scheduled events and decisions.

“I am grateful to our warriors who are fighting near Avdiivka, Maryinka, near Bakhmut… Especially Bakhmut! It’s especially hot there today! Near Bilohorivka, near Kreminna and all our other cities, towns and villages of Donbass. The resilience of everyone is the resilience of the whole of Ukraine, helping everyone in a position nearby is helping the whole of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said in a video address. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Poland becomes first NATO member to pledge fighter jets to Ukraine

Categories
-Top News EU News Europe

Poland becomes first NATO member to pledge fighter jets to Ukraine

President Andrzej Duda said that almost a dozen aircraft that Poland had inherited from the former German Democratic Republic would be handed over in the upcoming days after being serviced….reports Asian Lite News

Poland – the first NATO member to do so – on Thursday pledged that it would send four MiF-29 fighter jets to Ukraine. This was a significant development in Kyiv’s struggle to fend off Russian aggression, CNN reported.

President Andrzej Duda said that almost a dozen aircraft that Poland had inherited from the former German Democratic Republic would be handed over in the upcoming days after being serviced. Duda added, “When it comes to the MiG-29 aircraft, which are still operating in defence of Polish airspace, a decision has been taken at the highest levels, we can say confidently that we are sending MiGs to Ukraine.”

In providing Kyiv with heavy weaponry, Warsaw has assumed a leading position among NATO allies. A step beyond the rest of the alliance’s commitments, Poland’s statement that it will send the Soviet-designed aircraft may put pressure on other members to follow suit.

The US said on Thursday that Poland’s proposal would not require Washington to act, given that other NATO countries have been unwilling to go much beyond their earlier this year decided to send tanks to Kyiv.

The Polish president voiced the support of his nation and the Czech Republic for Kyiv while speaking at a news conference in Warsaw alongside his new counterpart, Petr Pavel, reported the CNN.

President Duda also said, “The Czech Republic and Poland are countries that are in the absolute vanguard when it comes to supporting Ukraine, both at humanitarian and military levels.”

Even before Russia invaded Ukraine, Poland was one of the loudest opponents of Russia in Europe. Many people in Poland’s political and diplomatic circles still view Russia from the Cold War perspective. Warsaw has always held the opinion that Putin is an unreliable leader and that any Russian expansion should be resisted at all costs. It is one of the few NATO nations with a legal obligation to fulfil its 2 per cent of GDP commitment to defence spending and is an active member of the European defence community.

Deploying MiGs is not out of the ordinary for Poland, and it fully complies with its NATO membership.

Although, this might alter the dynamic inside the alliance, serving as a stimulus for more nations to do so, or it might enrage nations like Hungary who are against NATO to get more involved in the fight.

The main concern will be whether it exerts pressure on the United States and the United Kingdom, which would then exert pressure on Germany. In the end, Poland presumably intended to put this pressure on other allies.

According to the White House, President Joseph Biden won’t send F-16 planes since Poland’s decision to send the fighter jets is a “sovereign choice,” made on Thursday.

John Kirby, a senior official at the US National Security Council, claimed that it didn’t alter his organisation’s thinking regarding F-16s.

He said, “These are sovereign decisions for any country to make and we respect those sovereign decisions,” adding, “They get to determine not only what they are going to give but how they’re going to characterise it.”

“I wouldn’t think it’s our place to characterise Poland’s decision one way or another,” Kirby said, denying to endorse the decision.

He said that Biden, who earlier this year declared he would not send US combat jets to Ukraine, will not be persuaded by Poland’s choice.

Ukraine has argued that it needs fighter jets from the US in addition to tanks so that it can defend itself from Russian missile and drone assaults.

But, the US and NATO officials have expressed doubt over the initiative, claiming that the jets wouldn’t be realistic since they require substantial training and that Russia has powerful anti-aircraft systems that could easily shoot them down. (ANI)

ALSO READ: Denmark to set up $1 bn aid for Ukraine

Categories
-Top News Europe

Poland signs contract for 1,400 military vehicles

borsuk ifv

Alongside the IFVs, the contract also covers reconnaissance, command, medevac, technical support and contamination detection vehicles…reports Asian Lite News

Poland’s government signed a framework contract on Monday with the country’s arms producer Huta Stalowa Wola for the delivery of around 1,000 infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) and some 400 accompanying vehicles to boost the country’s defence capabilities.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said at the signing ceremony that the first four Borsuk (Polish for “badger”) IFVs will be delivered by the end of the year. They will gradually replace the Soviet-era BWP-1 IFVs.

“I hope that the Polish armed forces will be equipped with new IFVs very soon,” Blaszczak said, adding, “The time of the IFVs that the Polish armed forces have been using so far are over, now it’s time for the Borsuk IFV era.”

Alongside the IFVs, the contract also covers reconnaissance, command, medevac, technical support and contamination detection vehicles.

Since 2022, Poland has already signed huge contracts for firearms and howitzers with domestic producers as well as with the US dealers for Abrams tanks and HIMARS rocket systems, and with South Korea for tanks, howitzers and light fighter jets.

In July last year, Blaszczak had said his country aimed to build the strongest ground forces among all the NATO members in Europe.

ALSO READ-Russia halts oil supply to Poland

Categories
-Top News Asia News

Russia halts oil supply to Poland

The company on Saturday said it is fully prepared for such a situation and that deliveries to its refinery can be made entirely by sea…reports Asian Lite News

Russia has halted oil supplies to Poland via the Druzhba pipeline, Poland’s leading oil and gas conglomerate PKN Orlen said.

Local media reported that the supply halt through the pipeline, exempted from the sanctions imposed by the European Union on Russia following the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, came a day after Poland delivered its first Leopard tanks to Ukraine.

The company on Saturday said it is fully prepared for such a situation and that deliveries to its refinery can be made entirely by sea.

“Only 10 per cent of the raw material came from Russia, and we will replace it with oil from other directions,” Daniel Obajtek, CEO of the Polish refiner, said on Twitter.

ALSO READ-Oppose unipolar world running in US interests, says Putin

Categories
-Top News London News UK News

Labour says UK risks falling behind Poland

The party has drawn up analysis based on World Bank data which says that, on current trajectories, per capita GDP in the U.K. will be some $600 behind that of Poland by 2030…reports Asian Lite News

Keir Starmer will on Monday ask British voters to judge him on whether they “feel better off after five years of a Labour government” as he tries to flesh out the opposition party’s economic thinking ahead of the next election.

The Labour leader — who current polls suggest is on course to be the U.K.’s next prime minister — will join his Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves and a host of business leaders Monday for a roundtable aimed at selling Labour’s promise to achieve the highest sustained growth in the G7 group of industrialized nations.

And he will insist that the U.K. economy does not have to lag behind Poland’s as some British commentators have predicted could happen by the end of the decade.

“The British people are falling behind while our European neighbors get richer, in the east as well as in countries like France and Germany,” Starmer will say, according to extracts released by the party overnight.

“I’m not comfortable with that. Not comfortable with a trajectory that will soon see Britain overtaken by Poland. Nor am I prepared to accept what the consequences of this failure would mean.”

The party has drawn up analysis based on World Bank data which says that, on current trajectories, per capita GDP in the U.K. will be some $600 behind that of Poland by 2030.

Labour has struggled to make a play on the economy since being ejected from office in 2010 in the wake of the global financial crisis. But the party senses a major opening after the short-lived Conservative administration of Liz Truss sparked market turmoil with a push for unfunded tax cuts. The International Monetary Fund has projected that Britain’s will be the only G7 economy to shrink in 2023.

Starmer will accuse the Conservatives of leaving the U.K. in a “low wage, high tax, doom-loop,” and call on his party to “be frank about the path of decline the Tories have set our country on.” Labour will, he is set to promise, “take on vested interests,” work to “shape markets” and shake up a planning system that currently favors “the already wealthy, not the new houses, wind farms and laboratories we need to create more wealth.”

The comments received a cautious welcome from some U.K. business leaders, with Carolyn Fairbairn, the former boss of lobby group the Confederation of Business Industry, saying that while Labour had “much heavy lifting to do,” the party’s pitch for a “true partnership with business to build predictable long-term policy, particularly in skills, education, innovation and infrastructure” marked “the right direction of travel.”

The governing Tories dismissed Starmer’s latest intervention, however, accusing Labour of flirting with higher inflation and taking potshots at its previous stint in office, which Conservative Chairman Greg Hands said had left public debt “spiraling.”

“Starmer’s Labour are too weak to stand up for the British people, let alone bring forward a credible plan for the economy,” he added.

ALSO READ-Labour vows to make Britain fastest-growing G7 economy 

Categories
-Top News Europe USA

US to sell rocket launchers, ammunition worth $10 bn to Poland

European nations have started to arm themselves, with the biggest buyers including Germany, Poland and others that sit close to Ukraine and Russia. ..reports Asian Lite News

The United States has planned to sell rocket launchers and ammunition worth about $10 billion to Poland amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, The Hill reported.

The package will include 18 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, 45 Army Tactical Missile Systems, the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System and related equipment, as per The Hill report. The US State Department on Tuesday said that the package will improve “the security of a NATO Ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in Europe.” The US administration notified Congress of the possible sale earlier Tuesday. US weapons sales to other countries experienced a significant increase in the past year largely due to the war between Russia and Ukraine, as per the news report.

European nations have started to arm themselves, with the biggest buyers including Germany, Poland and others that sit close to Ukraine and Russia. With the newest sale, Poland intends to use the advanced missile systems to “modernize its armed forces and expand its capability to strengthen its homeland defence and deter regional threats,” according to the US State Department.

Poland will also receive M1A1 Abrams battle tanks from Washington as part of an estimated USD 3.75 billion deal to purchase 116 vehicles, cleared in December. Furthermore, another USD 4.75 billion sale for 250 of the systems which was signed in April.

Last week, the United States announced a new security package plan, including authorisation of a Presidential Drawdown of security assistance valued at upto USD 425 million and USD 1.75 billion in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds, according to the statement released by US Defence Department.

The package pulled USD 425 million from existing Defence Department stocks, and USD 1.75 billion in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds. The new package marks USD 29.3 billion provided to Ukraine since Russia’s started its military operation last February.

In Friday’s announcement, the US also includes the critical air defense capabilities to help Ukraine defend its people. According to the statement, the specific capabilities include additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), additional 155mm artillery rounds, additional 120mm mortar rounds.

Furthermore, the security assistance includes 190 heavy machine guns with thermal imagery sights and associated ammunition to counter Unmanned Aerial Systems, 181 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicles; 250 Javelin anti-armor systems, 2,000 anti-armor rockets; claymore anti-personnel munitions, Demolitions munitions; cold weather gear, helmets, and other field equipment. (ANI)

ALSO READ: US will act if threatened, Biden warns China

Categories
-Top News EU News Europe

Poland to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine

A company typically consists of 14 tanks. Any re-export of Leopard tanks requires approval by the government in Berlin….reports Asian Lite News

Poland has decided to send German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine, the country’s President, Andrzej Duda, said.

On a visit to the city of Lviv in western Ukraine, Duda on Wednesday held talks with his Ukrainian and Lithuanian counterparts, Volodymyr Zelensky and Gitanas Nauseda, respectively, in the so-called Lublin Triangle format (a regional alliance of the three countries).

After the meeting, the Polish President told journalists that “A company of Leopard tanks will be handed over as part of building an international coalition,” he said.

“The decision has already been made in Poland,” Duda said, adding that he expected more countries to soon join the effort, Xinhua news agency reported.

A company typically consists of 14 tanks. Any re-export of Leopard tanks requires approval by the government in Berlin.

Russia, Ukraine exchange 50 soldiers

Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner exchange on Sunday with a total of 100 soldiers returning to their home countries, CNN reported citing authorities from both nations.

According to the Russian Defence Ministry, 50 Russian soldiers who had been captured by Ukraine returned to Russia due to the negotiation process.

This was the 36th exchange that took place between the two nations since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine started on February 24. Meanwhile, Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, stated that 50 Ukrainian soldiers captured by Russia returned to Ukraine. In a statement, Yermak said that Ukraine returned the people who were captured in Chernobyl nuclear power plant, Mariupol, Kherson, Kyiv, and other regions.

He stressed that this was not the last exchange between two nations and their work is to bring back all the people of Ukraine.

“We returned the people who were captured at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, as well as the defenders of Mariupol, the guys from the Donetsk direction, from near Bakhmut, as well as from Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kherson, and other regions,” said Andriy Yermak.

“This is not the last exchange. Our task is to return all our people and we will fulfill it,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Russian-declared ceasefire ended on Saturday at midnight (local time). Two missile strikes were reported in Kharkiv on Saturday which claimed the life of one civilian, CNN reported citing the head of the regional military administration Oleh Syniehubov. The ceasefire was announced from noon Moscow time on Friday to midnight on Saturday.

ALSO READ: Cleverly summons Iranian diplomat following executions

Categories
-Top News EU News Europe

Poland inks deal to buy more battle tanks from US

In April 2022, Poland signed another deal worth $4.74 billion with the US to buy 250 M1A2 Abrams tanks…reports Asian Lite News

 The Polish government signed a $1.4-billion deal to buy 116 battle tanks from the US.

The US Department of State in December 2022 approved the sale of the M1A1 Abrams tanks to Poland, alongside other military equipment, Xinhua news agency reported.

In April 2022, Poland signed another deal worth $4.74 billion with the US to buy 250 M1A2 Abrams tanks. Polish Deputy Prime Minister and defence chief Mariusz Blaszczak said these tanks will be delivered in late 2024.

The new batch, however, “will become part of the Polish Armed Forces this year,” Blaszczak said.

The tanks will be shipped to the east of the country, he explained, adding that the deal will not only boost Poland’s security, but “will also increase the security of the entire eastern flank of NATO”.

WWII damages from Germany

Poland had asked for the intervention of the United Nations (UN) over World War II reparations with Germany, a Polish Deputy Foreign Minister has said.

“The United Nations system offers instruments for dialogue as well as for introducing the international community to the scale of the damages caused by the German aggression and occupation during the war, and Poland intends to use them,” Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Arkadiusz Mularczyk said during a press conference on Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Later in the day, Mularczyk tweeted a photo of the letter addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

On September 1, 2022, the Polish government presented a report detailing the material losses suffered by Poland during World War II, along with a pledge to demand money from Germany in reparations, to the tune of 6.2 trillion zloty ($1.4 trillion). On October 3, 2022, Poland’s Foreign Ministry sent a diplomatic note to Germany demanding compensation for the damage.

On Tuesday, Germany’s Foreign Ministry responded to the note regarding WWII reparations, stating that the “issue remains closed”. Mularczyk said this displayed a “disrespectful attitude” toward Poland and its people.

ALSO READ: EU recommends pre-departure COVID tests for passengers from China