The ruling camp in Poland, as well as media outlets published in Berlin, are pressuring President Karol Nawrocki to sign the EU loan under the SAFE program. Meanwhile, information has emerged in the public sphere that the German government approved a record arms export in 2025 worth more than €13.11 billion. According to preliminary data, a significant portion of these exports went to EU countries as well as NATO member states or NATO-equivalent countries such as Switzerland – reports Rheinische Post.
“These reports coming both from German media and directly from German politicians clearly show that Germany, although it does not participate in the SAFE program, is sharpening its appetite to profit financially from it, because Poland will be repaying this loan until 2070,” said former Deputy Minister of National Defence Wojciech Skurkiewicz in an interview with Niezalezna.pl.
President Karol Nawrocki has not yet made a decision regarding the EU credit under SAFE. Nevertheless, German media have begun attacking the head of state as well as the Polish opposition.
“The opposition, however, sees this as a threat to the country’s sovereignty and once again constructs an alleged conspiracy according to which Brussels, through this program, will interfere with the sovereignty of national defense policy and thus deliver Poland into the hands of Germany,” wrote Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in today’s edition.
Germany exports weapons while buying new ones in the United States
However, this is not the only issue German media are discussing regarding armaments and related matters. On the same day, Rheinische Post – a daily newspaper published in Düsseldorf – revealed that last year the German government approved record arms exports worth more than €13.11 billion. According to the report, the largest beneficiary is expected to be Ukraine. Apart from it, other major recipients of German military equipment include Norway, Sweden, Turkey and Singapore.
Not long ago, the government’s plenipotentiary for SAFE, Magdalena Sobkowiak-Czarnecka, admitted that part of the loan taken under SAFE would be allocated by Poland to support Ukraine. “It will be a small part, which I think will amount to around 4-5 percent of the total sum.”
It is also worth recalling that in recent years Germany has been one of the largest buyers of American military equipment. For example, in 2023 the weapons it purchased from the United States reached a value of as much as $13.9 billion. Now, statements by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz indicate that Berlin is seeking further purchases of military equipment – precisely from across the Atlantic.
The reason for the pressure becoming clearer?
Does this explain the pressure on the Polish president to sign the SAFE agreement? The editorial team of Niezalezna.pl asked Wojciech Skurkiewicz, former Deputy Minister of National Defence.
“It is extraordinary that there is such pressure being exerted on the president to sign this law as quickly as possible. Let me remind you that the bill was processed in the Sejm in the presence of the German ambassador. These reports coming both from German media and directly from German politicians clearly show that Germany, although it does not participate in the SAFE program, is sharpening its appetite to profit financially from it, because Poland will be repaying this loan until 2070. Orders will have to be placed not only with the Polish defense industry but also abroad. A number of entities are already holding talks with German partners, such as the company Niewiadów with the German firm Rheinmetall. There will likely be many more such proposals. It is completely incomprehensible why those in power are so eager to take an expensive German loan that we will be repaying for many decades,” he assessed.
He continued: “Germany has a specific portfolio of products within its defense industry that it manufactures. At the same time, it realizes that the most advanced equipment, which is practically tested in combat every day through involvement in various stabilization operations or conflicts, is produced by the Americans. Germany is not capable of producing, for example, Patriot missile batteries. Yet they are part of the equipment of the German army – and they have to be purchased in America. One could list many more such elements of weaponry.”
“Today, everyone thinking rationally should be aware that cooperation with the United States is crucial for Europe in many dimensions, because the United States is also the guarantor of security on the continent. This cooperation also includes placing orders there. As we can see, it is not only important for Poland but also for the Bundeswehr. As Poles, we should play on many pianos. We should not close ourselves off from cooperation with the United States, yet that is what Donald Tusk is doing today, and many EU countries are trying to do the same in order to push the United States out of Europe – something that should not be accepted,” he concluded.