By his statement about possible arms supplies to Kyiv in connection with the conflict over the Polish import ban on Ukrainian grain, the head of Poland’s government has triggered speculation.
In the evening interview with the TV channel “Polsat News”, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki responded to the presenter’s question whether Poland would continue to support Ukraine with arms deliveries and humanitarian aid despite the grain dispute. He said, “We are already not supplying arms to Ukraine, but are equipping ourselves with the most modern weapons,” as the German news website tagesschau.de reported.
Morawiecki went on to say that Poland had significantly expanded its orders for defense equipment. “If you don’t want to defend yourself, you have to have something to defend yourself with – we are committed to this rule.” The armed forces would be modernized so that Poland could have one of the strongest land armies in Europe, Morawiecki added.
In another part of the interview, Morawiecki stressed that the government in Warsaw would in no way jeopardize Ukraine’s security. He assured, “Our hub in Rzeszow, in agreement with the Americans and NATO, will continue to play the same role as before and in the future.” A significant portion of Western military aid to Ukraine in its defensive campaign against Russia passes through the city of Rzeszow in southeastern Poland.
Image: president.gov.ua, Участь Президента України у засіданні РНБО 19, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image size modified)