NATO commander positive about Poland's reform of its armed forces

Commander in Chief of NATO forces in Europe, General Joseph W. Ralston, has given a positive appraisal of Poland's efforts to restructure its armed forces over the past year. In particular he praised the success in reducing the number of service personnel, saying this would allow more to be spent on modernizing the armed forces. Because of the country's economic difficulties, the Defense Ministry has had its budget cut by nearly zl.2 billion this year. But Ralston said NATO "fully understands this situation". Ralston was speaking during a visit to Poland yesterday, He also announced that this spring 30,000 NATO troops will be taking part in military exercises on Polish territory. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 8) M.T.K.