Increasing anti-surprise capabilities, expanding mobility and protecting own troops, obstructing abroad troops' movement and defending civilians are the objectives of the Shield East. On Monday, the Ministry of National Defence and the General Staff of the Polish Army presented the findings of the national deterrence and defence programme.
“The safety of Poland requires immediate strengthening and taking concrete and effective action,” said Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz at the office of the General Staff of the Polish Army today. – The answer to threats is the Tarcza East programme, for which we will allocate PLN 10 billion. This is the usage of state-of-the-art safety technologies and the construction of fresh infrastructure in the east of Poland," said the head of the MON. Minister together with Cezary Tomczyk, Secretary of State at the MON and gene. Wiesław Kukuła, the head of the SGWP presented at the press conference the establishment of a national deterrence and defence programme. – The shield of the East is to make it not worth attacking Poland. This strategy is to act as a deterrent, and in the event of a conflict increase the safety of the population and our troops," Kosiniak-Kamish said. “This is the largest operation to strengthen NATO’s east flank since 1945,” he added.
Within 4 years, within the Shield East, a military installation belt will be built on the 700-kilometre long of the east and northern border, reaching up to 50 km deep in the country, importantly expanding its leak. The investment is intended to prosecute 4 basic objectives: to increase the anti-surpractice capabilities of the Polish army, to facilitate the movement of own troops along the border line, to make it hard for abroad troops to penetrate the border and to increase the protection of their own troops and civilians in the area. “The expected end consequence will be strengthening the state’s resilience,” said General Wiesław Kukuła, head of SGWP. – The border area will be prepared for the defence and immediate projection of forces, i.e. the ability to immediately make our troops and join the fight," added the general.
A network of masts will be built in the border lane to service as base stations for communication and reconnaissance systems in order to increase anti-surprise capabilities. Sensors and cameras (e.g. acoustic, night imagination or infrared recording) will be installed on the masts, and data from them will be transmitted to the operating centres, which will analyse them. Ground installations to be supported diagnosis from air, at each level – from tactical short-range drones utilized by land troops and territorial defence, through reconnaissance by the air force to the strategy satellite diagnosis. The situation image thus obtained will give the Polish Army full information in real time and will let to respond quickly.
Investment in communication infrastructure along the border line will increase the mobility of the troops liable for defending it. The military, together with local local authorities, will prepare places of crossings through water obstacles or access to the footholds, and selected engineering facilities will be adapted to dense loads. fresh road investments in this area will be implemented taking into account the request for a possible defence operation. The military will besides establish in the region, among others, 8 advanced operational bases, which will shorten the projection time of the forces, that is, the time essential to full make the forces designated to conduct the defensive operation.
Other installations are intended to make the movement of abroad troops as hard as possible in this area if there is an armed breach of the border. These will include anti-tank ditches, deep meliorative ditches and areas prepared to spread minefields. Part of the existing road infrastructure will be prepared for fast demolition in the event of a conflict. Equipment and material retention facilities will besides be built, essential to prepare the border for defence on the eve of possible conflict and later defence operations. – This will not be the Maginot Line – assured General Wiesław Kukuła. The head of the SGWP recalled that the Polish defence doctrine assumes conducting a maneuvering operation, not waiting to strike abroad troops in fortified fortresses. Hence, specified force in the Tarcza East program to channel the opponent's movement to decision towards areas convenient for defence by the Polish Army and to make it as easy as possible to maneuver their own troops so that they can be rapidly spread into areas peculiarly endangered.
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The last nonsubjective of the programme is to increase the protection of local populations and troops operating in the area. The construction of hiding places for civilians and soldiers is planned.
The planning work in the General Staff has already begun. An inter-ministerial squad was besides established, composed of representatives of defence, home affairs and administration, state assets, climate and infrastructure. Within a fewer weeks, the Sejm is expected to receive a bill on investments of peculiar importance for the safety of the State, which will facilitate the implementation of the infrastructure part of the programme. This year, MON and the military are expected to start buying the equipment and materials needed to strengthen the border, and in the first 4th of 2025 the first construction projects will begin.
The implementation of the programme in the years 2024-2028 will consume about PLN 10 billion. The funds will come from the state budget, but Deputy Prime Minister Kosiniak-Kamish announced that the government would make efforts to finance at least part of the costs from the European Union, specified as the unused National Reconstruction Programme. "The programme is in line with NATO's plans for deterrence and defence, and the European Union should be financially active in safety building," the Deputy Prime Minister pointed out.
As the Deputy Minister Tomczyk assured, the Shield East assumptions were created in consultation with NATO partners. The Polish border strengthening programme is intended to complement the task implemented jointly by the Baltic countries. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia signed an agreement in January this year to strengthen the border with Russia, the alleged Baltic defence line. Within a fewer years these investments will make a belt of about 1000 bunkers, supplemented by another defensive installations – minefields, anti-tank dams or artillery stations. – We want the east Shield and the Baltic defence line to form the full thing. We want to bring about the integration of these systems, so that this is 1 line of defence for the European Union and NATO", pointed out the Deputy Head of the MON.
