Prepped and ready

Tomasz Siemoniak, Minister of Defense, talks with WBJ Observer about Poland’s military at a time of crisis in ukraine and aggressive movements of Russia Interview by Ewa Boniecka WBJ Observer: How is Poland prepared to respond to the dangerous situation close to our borders following the Russian aggression in Ukraine? Tomasz Siemoniak: Very quickly after the breakout of the Ukrainian crisis and aggressive action of Russia, NATO, with Poland’s active participation, introduced concrete measures to respond to it. Now, many aspects of NATO activity are organized in a different way. At the summit in Newport in September decisions were taken for moving the gravity of the Alliance’s activity to its eastern part. This is of crucial importance to Poland’s security and further strengthening and modernization of our army. We are well prepared to respond to the present crisis and our armed forces are ready, together with our allies, to secure Poland’s borders and the eastern flank of NATO. Nevertheless, Poles are worried about our country’s security and recent research conducted by polling house Maison for Warsaw Enterprise Institute, shows that 70 percent of Poles are of the opinion that Poland is not adequately prepared for the defense of its borders and 63 percent hold a negative view of the capability of our army. What is your reaction to this? The Polish army is met with trust and confidence of the public, so I think that the findings you have mentioned show mainly certain emotions, dependent on the moment of polling and the way the questions are formulated. But the present crisis in Ukraine is a matter of Poland’s security. A topic which seemed to be closed, is now open. Poles know their history. They remember very well what happened to our country in the generation of their fathers and grandfathers, so no wonder an alarm bell was set off. And as far as criticisms towards the condition of our army are concerned, I think it should motivate us to do more to strengthen it. Those feelings of insecurity among Poles are galvanizing the activity of various civil groups of people, who are preparing themselves for defending the country in case of war. It is a new phenomenon altogether. Those organizations gather thirty thousand members and there is now a public discussion whether to call those groups the Home Army, referring to the famous Polish AK forces acting under Nazi occupation during WW2, while some members of AK combat organizations are protesting against using such a name. What do you think about those civil movements? Whatever that citizens’ movement for defending our border would be called, it is a demonstration of Poles’ willingness to be directly engaged in defending the country, in case of need. I look at those movements in a very positive way and think that my ministry and the recently organized Bureau of Defense Initiatives should help them to cooperate with each other and with the army. For some time, military experts have been preparing a reform of the Military Reserve Forces. We also see a growing number of recruits. All of this shows that the security of our country is a top priority for the Ministry, but also for the society. It seems that during years of stability and peace in Europe, we have moved away from looking at our country’s security as a concern of each citizen, leaving the problem of defense to the professional army. But now, at a time of crisis and Russian military presence close to our borders, more of our citizens, regardless of their profession, start to think that it would be worthwhile to have certain military training and they are willing to obtain it and use it in time of need. I look at this willingness also from a broader perspective  as building a responsible civic society, creating the feeling of togetherness. The will to act, to help authorities in case of flood and other natural disasters is growing. You have recently announced the enlargement of Polish military presence in the eastern part of Poland. How will this affect our armed forces and the security of our borders? [caption id="attachment_66494" align="alignright" width="300"] Image: Jan Malinowski/WBJ[/caption] For many years, we’ve concentrated armed forces in the western part of the country, which was a legacy of the previous political system. I want to strengthen our military presence in the eastern part, which is obviously needed to bolster our defense system. It has to be stressed that it does not mean simple moving of some garrisons from the west to the east, but rather building up modern military infrastructure in the eastern part of our country. With the current strength of the eastern garrisons at about 30 percent, it is obvious that their capabilities have to be raised to a higher level. The military infrastructure in the eastern part is still a relic of the previous system, and so is the equipment. During a period of 3-4 years the number of soldiers in the east will be significantly increased, the military equipment will be modernized, new military facilities will be built. It is a demanding task but if we want to significantly strengthen our security, it must be done. But when will the crucial political decision taken at the NATO summit in Newport be implemented and the NATO rapid reaction force be put into operation? Those crucial political decisions taken in Newport show that there is a common agreement within NATO that we have to act accordingly with regard to the new situation and implement a new strategy. Russia is violating all principles of international law and openly provoking the western world, so the response of NATO has to be clear and firm. Now the military experts of the Alliance are working on the details of the new strategy, which will be approved by NATO defense ministers in February 2015. There are three domains which are of crucial importance for Poland. First, a continuous rotational presence of NATO forces in Poland. Second, the creation of NATO Rapid Reaction Forces, the so called “spearhead.” The third is the strengthening of the existing North-East Corps in Szczecin, which is to become the center of defense operations of the Alliance on the eastern flank. The spearhead forces, with a Polish component, would be ready for action within a couple of  hours in case of need. It will be a fully operational NATO force structure, with a strength of at least 4,000 soldiers and it could be ready to operate on the eastern flank of the Alliance, as well as in the south of  Europe. Anywhere that threats occur. Every day, we learn of Russian inspired fighting in the east of Ukraine and Russian military planes violating the space of some NATO members, so wouldn’t waiting for alliance actions till February increase our present feeling of insecurity? The practical steps will be taken in a couple of weeks. The allies are at an all time high vigilance level reacting to provocative actions of Russia’s air force, which were intercepted and forced to leave NATO air space. Let me remind you that there are constant military exercises being conducted on the territories of the eastern member states of the Alliance. Only yesterday, 1,500 soldiers: British, Americans and Poles took part in exercises in Poland. Yet, it is now clear that permanent NATO bases will not be installed in Poland, while we wanted to have at least one of these bases. How do you look at this? I look at it in a pragmatic way. I think that for Poles and for our security, a constant rotational presence of NATO soldiers conducting various military exercises in the eastern part of the Alliance is needed more. The world around us has changed and so have the threats. We cannot look for analogies to the Cold War, when the armies of two opposite blocks were facing each other directly on the border. I would like to assure you that we are working very hard to obtain the biggest possible presence of Allied Forces in Poland. Rotational presence of those forces and well-prepared military infrastructure are crucial to assure swift action of the NATO spearhead in time of need. A strong proof of American presence in Poland will be the anti-missile shield in Redzikowo, where ground works are already under way and will be completed at the end of 2018. We are closely cooperating with our allies, doing our home work in the field of defense and investing in it. From 2016 on, our defense spending will reach 2 percent of GDP and during the nearest 10 years we want to spend PLN 130 billion on the modernization of our army. Yes, it will be a tremendous effort. The exact amount of money spent on the army will be linked to our GDP growth. These expenses will generate development and innovation in our military industry and in the whole economy. This money will also be spent on purchasing some new equipment, like drones, much needed helicopters and missiles. These will be high-value contracts and there is a pending competition among foreign companies. The ministry is setting up mechanisms for the careful monitoring of all purchases, aiming to link them with obtaining new technologies for our military producers. The reform of the command system of our army is criticized by some analysts, claiming that there is a lack of clarity of command in the armed forces in case of war. What is your response? The reform was adopted one year ago and our system is adjusting to the new tasks and allowing for full cohesion with NATO systems and armies. The present system concentrates command around three basic functions: strategic planning, the general command and the operational command. The General Staff is defined as the planning body and the main strategic adviser to the minister of defense, while the functions of the armed forces command are divided between the general commander, called the force provider and the operational commander, called the force user. While the general commander is commanding the army during peace, the operational commander would be responsible for commanding during war. The criticism that there is no clear chain of command in our army in case of war is unfounded. President Bronisław Komorowski has said that sending Polish soldiers to participate in operations outside NATO territory would be considered, but our primary task is the defense of our country. Does this mean that we will limit our participation in NATO missions outside Europe? Poland belongs to those NATO members who have taken part in all of the Alliance’s operations abroad. Our soldiers are considered to be courageous and professional contributors and our credibility in fulfilling NATO missions is well established. In my view, President Komorowski pointed to the need of keeping a certain balance between our participation in operations outside of Europe and our military tasks at home. The crisis in Ukraine shows how crucial keeping that balance is. What help is NATO ready to offer Ukraine? It has been decided that NATO will establish four special funds for helping reform and modernize the Ukrainian army and provide some military equipment. There is no NATO embargo on the sale of weapons to Ukraine and any NATO member can make their own decision. Poland is involved in military cooperation with Ukraine by, for example, setting up the Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian Brigade, which will help reform the Ukrainian armed forces. We are sending helmets and bullet-proof vests to the Ukrainian army, providing Ukraine with humanitarian assistance and financing the medical care of wounded Ukrainian soldiers in Polish hospitals. NATO strongly supports the territorial integrity of Ukraine and its pro-European policy. During the last years, Ukraine has been an active partner of NATO with active participation in different missions, for example in Afghanistan. But it is clear that its accession to the Alliance is not a current issue. Do we have a new cold war between Russia and the West? As many analysts, especially in the US, claim? We are at an entirely new stage of relations with Russia, when Moscow uses military force to push towards its goals. I think that it will be very difficult to return to business-as-usual relations between the West and Russia. But whether we can talk about a new cold war, is easier to answer by analysts than by acting politicians. Certainly we, in the West, are not interested in a new cold war. Still, Russia seems to run its policy towards a hostile confrontation with the West. We are ready to address this policy. Coming to some other world issues, are cyber attacks a new kind of war and a serious threat to our security? The threat of cyber attacks is treated very seriously by NATO and Poland. In the Ministry of National Defense, a center of defense against such attacks has been created. We concentrate on defense of military and government institutions, but possible cyber attacks on banks and other public institutions are also treated very seriously. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated recently that any cyber attack on a NATO member state will be considered an act of violence and will call for an appropriate response, accordingly to Article 5 of the NATO Treaty, calling for common defense.