Joining the program in its current form would mean years of financial dependence on a catalogue of products designated by the European Commission. In practice, this would prevent the proper development of the Polish Armed Forces – wrote the leader of Law and Justice (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, referring to the SAFE program.
Strong Remarks from the PiS Leader on SAFE
The chairman of Law and Justice (PiS), Jarosław Kaczyński, published a post on platform X addressing the SAFE program being pushed by the December 13 coalition government.
Loans from SAFE are not additional funds for defense. They are meant to replace part of the already existing funding. Entering this program in its current form would mean long-term financial dependence on a catalogue of products designated by the European Commission. In practice, this would make it impossible to properly develop the Polish Armed Forces – he stated.
As his main objections, he listed:
- “The principle of conditionality, which in fact amounts to political blackmail, giving the EU the right to suspend payments at any time,”
- “The lack of statutory guarantees that the money will go to the Polish defense industry.”
The politician emphasized that “Law and Justice has always wanted a strong army and has cared for the development of the Polish Armed Forces, including at a time when those currently in power were shutting down military units on a massive scale.”
“No one who wants a strong and sovereign army should support the SAFE fund,” he concluded.
Major Controversy Surrounding the SAFE Program
The draft law on the Financial Instrument for Increasing Security (SAFE), adopted by the Council of Ministers at the request of the Minister of National Defence, is intended to enable Poland to effectively use funds from the EU’s SAFE program. According to the Ministry of National Defence, the new regulations are to introduce clear rules for acquiring, managing, and spending the funds, while maintaining public finance oversight and compliance with EU requirements.
SAFE supports investment in the European defense industry. Poland has applied for a loan exceeding €43.7 billion (approximately PLN 200 billion), nearly 80 percent of which is to go to the domestic arms industry, making Poland the program’s main beneficiary.
At the same time, the draft law currently does not provide for a dedicated anti-corruption oversight mechanism proportionate to the financial scale and pace of procurement implementation—an addition that the president has called for. Karol Nawrocki has also stressed the need to disclose in advance the list of 139 projects planned under SAFE, before signing the bill into law.
Additionally, it has emerged that the largest grant is to be awarded not to a state-owned entity, but to the private company Polska Amunicja, which has very close ties to the current ruling camp.
The opposition has expressed concerns that the funds may primarily benefit defense industries in France and Germany and has criticized the lack of transparency in financing individual projects. The head of the National Security Bureau (BBN), Prof. Sławomir Cenckiewicz, has questioned the rationale behind moving away from arms purchases from the United States and South Korea in favor of EU—particularly German—manufacturers.