Field architects

The Saper Day celebrated on 16 April is simply a formation vacation that has become a pillar of modern defense. Brig. Gen. Mariusz Ochalski, Head of the Board of Military Engineering, Deputy Inspector of Army Types of General Command of Armed Forces, points out that thanks to the “Tarcza East” programme and departure from the Ottawa Convention, Polish bomb squads gain strategical importance.

We live in a dynamic geopolitical and military reality. In front of our eyes, weapons standards are changing, ways of conducting war. What is the place of engineering troops in all of this?

Brig-Gen Mariusz Ochalski: The Russian-Ukrainian War, which is simply a origin of experience and cognition for us, confirmed unequivocally that the engineering troops ceased to be a secondary element, carrying out tasks only “in the background” of combat activities. Currently, they are 1 of the key factors determining the military's ability to conduct operations, keep manoeuvre, build defence and last in the battlefield, which has undergone a extremist transformation under the influence of mass usage of artillery, unmanned aircraft and advanced means of reconnaissance and destruction.

Bombers operate under continuous fire hazard conditions, reconnaissance from the air and re-mining the site. At the same time, it depends on the efficient operation of the engineering troops to keep the approaches, execute transitions in extended engineering dams, organize crossings, rebuild critical infrastructure and guarantee the endurance of their own troops, both on the front line and deep in the group. In practice, this means that military engineering has become 1 of the main “architects” of the battlefield, shaping the area in a way conducive to its own troops and limiting the freedom of the opponent.

Today's bomb squad is simply a soldier fighting on the front line, an operator of modern technology and a key associate in the combined operation – a soldier without whom the 21st century war cannot be won.

So the trench war has returned to “grace”?

Yes, but in a fresh dimension. The analyses carried out in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and in the doctrinal centres of NATO confirm the renaissance of field fortifications, but in a completely fresh form. The modern trench war is not just about carrying out shooting ditches, but about building multi-layer, closed and masked artillery-resistant defence systems and FPV attacks.

Prefabricated protections, communication lines shielded from unmanned aircraft, anti-drone dams and apparent targets have become standard. Bombers are liable not only for their construction in specified a way as to integrate engineering dams into the fire system, but besides make conditions for integration into another layers of anti-drone protection, which in practice determines the effectiveness of defence.

The war in Ukraine besides showed the scale and efficiency of the usage of deep, multi-layered minefields, supplemented by terrain, water and fortifications. Mining – both manual and distant – has become an immediate consequence to changes in tactical situation. At the same time, the universality of re-mining, including the usage of drones and the variety of miner-containers forced the improvement of the ability to remove improvised explosives and engineering reconnaissance. We draw from Ukrainian experience. They were straight reflected in the improvement directions of our engineering troops.

Poland has resigned from the Ottawa Convention. What changes that for engineering troops?

The change is fundamental. The abolition of legal restrictions restores the anticipation of using, producing and storing anti-personnel mines, which translates into their reintegration into operational planning. In practice, this means that we are returning to classical solutions in the field of combat formation by limiting the freedom of the opponent's maneuver. We are restoring the capabilities associated with the creation of minefields and the construction of mine-based dams, which restores a full spectrum of counter-mobility activities, which is related to the regulation of the freedom of manoeuvre of the opponent.

At the same time, the importance of the engineering component in the structure of the Polish Army is growing, as mine dams will again become an integral component of layer defence, closely linked to fire systems and reconnaissance. This besides means adapting to these changes to the doctrines and the training programme and developing fresh competences, peculiarly as regards the usage of modern mines equipped with self-destruction mechanisms and distant mining systems. At the same time, it is planned to reconstruct production possible and stocks, as well as to make measures to rapidly make large-scale dams, including through programmes to strengthen the east border.

As a result, we are faced not only with a legal change, but with the restoration of operational capacity of strategical importance. Engineering troops again gain the position of 1 of the key elements of the combat system, liable for shaping the operating environment and limiting the freedom of the opponent to act.

Brig. Gen. Mariusz Ochalski, Head of the Board of Military Engineering, Deputy Inspector of Military Types General Command.

Eastern Shield – is this the biggest challenge for the engineering troops today?

Definitely. This is now the most visible and demanding bomb squad activity. Due to the scale and complexity of the project, it should be considered that since 1945 engineering troops have not implemented specified a multi-layered fortification strategy and dam associated with the expansion of logistics and defence infrastructure. It is intended to safe a belt nearly 700 km long along the state border with the Russian Federation and Belarus.

An crucial component is besides being built material compositions to collect fortification materials in the border strip. In the end, the expansion will be extended to cover and opposition points. In addition, we implement detection and monitoring systems and drone protection. All of this goes hand in hand with legal changes that will enable the usage of the border belt, water, roads and forest areas.

How will this fortification strategy change the safety of the east border? How will the military change in this place?

The border belt will yet be converted into a permanent region of multi-layer military defence. Soldiers will operate in a prepared, fortified area, which will increase their advantage, allowing them to detect threats before, respond faster and more effectively, and possible hostile actions – especially drone and hybrid – will be more hard to carry out.

I would point out that cooperation with our allies from the Baltic States is crucial in this case. Our programme “Tarcza East” and “Baltic Defence Line“ — The BDL [the joint initiative of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, launched in 2024 to strengthen the east border with Russia and Belarus, ed.] is intended to supply a coherent, regional strategy of deterrence and protection of the east border of the European Union and NATO flanks. At EU level, they have been recognised as strategical projects. Both projects are complementary in both geographical (space continuity) and functional (ensure the mobility of allied troops, reduce mobility of possible opponents and increase endurance capacity).

At what phase is the implementation of the programme now, and erstwhile will the Shield of the East work fully?

By the end of 2025, our armed forces had secured an engineering border of over 60 km, including 10 km of the alleged linear building [LRI – linear engineering extension], i.e. anti-tank dams, trenches, shooting sites, shelters importantly expanding the anticipation of defence on these sections. 13 material warehouses were besides built, which allowed to collect prefabricates for subsequent episodes of LRI.

This year the plans will safe another 200 km of border, including another 20 km of linear construction. In this way, by the end of the year a full of 260 km of the border will be secured, which is almost 40% of the full border belt with Russia and Belarus. The implementation of the programme in parallel includes an intensive process of acquiring land remaining in the resources of the National Centre for Agricultural Support, State Forests and purchases from private owners, mainly in Warmian and Podlaskie provinces.

In conclusion, this year the engineering and land acquisition work will be importantly accelerated, which should translate into many times the larger section of the safety border. The deadline for full preparedness depends on many factors, but I can assure you that the engineering troops will carry out the tasks as shortly as possible.

What is the overall direction of the improvement of engineering troops in the coming years?

The main task for us is method modernization, and 1 of the key aspects of it – the improvement of automation and distant control systems. Traditional, hand-operated equipment gradually yields more technologically advanced solutions, reducing the hazard of human errors and reducing the vulnerability of soldiers to threats, and enhancing the efficiency of engineering tasks.

It is besides about shortening the time of implementation of typical tasks of bomb squads, i.e. bridge sections. Today, thanks to modern support systems and better method parameters of equipment, it is possible to execute work much faster, specified as the construction of crossings, the preparation of dams or the construction of fortifications. Today's battlefield requires quite a few momentum, and the pace of execution frequently determines the success of the operation.

In terms of mobility, modern crossing measures specified as PFM F3 pontoon parks and Bridges accompanying MS-20 Daglesia, which let efficient overcoming of obstacles.

On the another hand, the overhead mines we develop, specified as Baobab-K, and means of destruction, specified as the anti-tank mine control strategy Jarzobin-K, are to effectively limit the freedom of manoeuvre of the opponent.

Modern engineering mechanization kits, specified as Cumin and systems for fast construction of military infrastructure. We're collecting machines. UBM [Ultimate Building Machine, a set of equipment for the manufacture of finished steel building elements – ed.], among others, for the construction of the “Hard East”. This strategy enables the fast construction of defensive, warehouse and logistics facilities, at a time calculated in days alternatively than months.

In conclusion, the method modernisation we are focusing on is simply a precedence direction in the improvement of engineering troops. It increases mobility, efficiency and security. We adapt our engineering forces to the requirements of the modern battlefield.