Belgium to buy Polish anti-aircraft systems, says defence minister
Belgium will purchase between 200 and 300 'Piorun' anti-aircraft missile systems from Poland, Polish defence minister has announced.
Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz met with his Belgian counterpart Theo Francken at the headquarters of the Polish armament manufacturer MESKO in Skarzysko-Kamienna, southern Poland, where Piorun systems are produced for export to countries such as Ukraine and Norway.
During the meeting the two signed a letter of intent regarding the purchase of the Polish-made man-portable air-defence system by Belgium.
"The letter of intent we signed is for the purchase of Piorun systems - about 200, between 200 and 300 units that Belgium will acquire, but also for the exchange of experience," Kosiniak-Kamysz said at the signing.
He added that Poland will benefit from the skills Belgian pilots have already acquired in operating the F-35 multirole combat aircraft as the country is buying the same configured versions of the US-made aircraft.
He also said that Polish and Belgian pilots were currently training on new machines in the US.
Kosiniak-Kamysz further said that he sees "a greater role for Belgium in the arena of NATO and the European Union in the field of defence, in the field of security."
"For this I wanted to thank the minister straight away, because two or three days after he became minister, we talked and agreed to work closely together," he said.
Kosiniak-Kamysz added that the agreement signed on Monday was the result of this established relationship. "I am very happy that today the Kingdom of Belgium will be safer. From today it will be richer with the best equipment produced in Poland," he said.
During Monday's meeting the ministers also agreed to start work on a new defence cooperation agreement, which will replace the one in force for the last 30 years.
"We will soon sign a new version, addressing the threats that exist today and enhanced with the experience that we have from our past cooperation," Kosianiak- Kamysz said.
He added that Poland and Belgium share a similar assessment of the role of the United States in Europe, the need to strengthen the continent's defence capabilities and of aid for Ukraine "about support for those who are also fighting for our security."
"Belgium is getting back on track," Francken told a press briefing following the meeting with Kosiniak-Kamysz.
He said that Belgium intends to raise its level of defence spending to 2 percent.
"We will have greater capabilities and we will cooperate with a strong country, a strong nation, which is Poland, in many matters: F-35, MQ-9B [unmanned aerial system enabling image reconnaissance data acquisition], Pioruns, but also in many other matters. We will cooperate. We will be strong," Francken said.
He also said that the Pioruns produced in Mesko are "the best equipment in the world".
"We believe in NATO, but we also believe in European cooperation. Poland has always been a very strong partner of Belgian defence and of Belgium," Francken added.(PAP)
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