Poland to build anti-drone defenses along eastern border in 2 years

LONDON

Poland has announced plans to complete new anti-drone fortifications along its eastern border within the next two years, amid what officials say are repeated incursions by Russian drones into Polish airspace.

Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk said the new system would begin operating within months.

“We expect to have the first capabilities of the system in roughly six months, perhaps even sooner. And the full system will take 24 months to complete,” he told the Guardian.

The project, expected to cost more than €2 billion ($2.3 billion), will integrate new air defense technologies into an older line of border fortifications constructed around a decade ago.

According to him, the layered defenses will include machine guns, cannons, missiles, and drone-jamming systems. He added that “some of this is for use only in extreme or war conditions.”

The announcement follows a series of incidents in September, when more than a dozen suspected Russian drones entered Polish airspace.

Poland and NATO jets shot down some of the drones, with debris causing damage to buildings.

Tomczyk also said most of the funding for the "drone wall" would come from European sources through the SAFE defense loan program, with additional contributions from Poland’s state budget.

“The truth is that as long as Ukraine is defending itself and fighting Russia, Europe is not at risk of war in the conventional, strict sense of the word,” he was quoted by the Guardian as saying.

However, he warned that Europe would instead face “provocations and acts of sabotage.”