“Poland is ready to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 aircraft. However, such training has not started yet. I proposed that such training should be counted as part of the EU training mission that is being conducted in Poland. (…) This is an example of excellent cooperation between European countries in support of Ukraine.”, said Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Błaszczak during a conference in Brussels.
On 23 May, Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Blaszczak took part in a meeting of European Union Defence Ministers held in Brussels. The meeting was chaired by Joseph Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security.
The main theme of the meeting of Defence Ministers was issues concerning the security situation in the region, with particular emphasis on support for Ukraine, which is defending itself against unprovoked Russian aggression, as well as cooperation between member states in supplementing their own defence capabilities.
“Poland is a country on NATO’s eastern flank, so we have certain obligations arising not only from the duty to defend Polish airspace, but also to protect, for example, the airspace of the Baltic States. Therefore, we are open to suggestions and proposals. We talked about it on today’s meeting.”,
stressed Deputy Prime Minister Blaszczak.
During the visit to Brussels, there was also a conversation in a bilateral format between Deputy Prime Minister Błaszczak and Boris Pistorius, Minister of Defence of Germany.
“We discussed with Minister Pistorius the launch of the hub, which is designed to maintain the Leopard tanks that are already in Ukraine. There are some challenges ahead, but I think that we will overcome these challenges. We also talked about extending the presence of German Patriots on Polish soil and I am optimistic about this topic too.”,
noted the head of the Ministry of Defence.
Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Błaszczak also referred to his conversation with European Union Commissioner Thierry Breton.
“I also spoke with Commissioner Breton about the production of ammunition in Polish plants belonging to the Polish Armaments Group. (…) We have assurances regarding the fact that in a very short time the process will be launched. The European Commission has adequate funds at its disposal, which it wants to allocate for investments in launching, or developing production capacity of particular plants. And the Polish arms industry is one of the European leaders when it comes to the production of ammunition.”,
informed the Minister.
During the meeting of EU defence ministers, a meeting was also held with the participation of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, at which issues of EU-NATO cooperation in connection with the current security situation in Europe were discussed.
On 23 May, a meeting was held in Mons between Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Błaszczak and General Christopher Cavoli, Supreme Commander of NATO Allied Forces in Europe (SACEUR).