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Defence Minister: Polish tank battalion to be relocated eastwards

PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk 15.12.2016 10:31
Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz has announced that one tank battalion will be moved to the east of Warsaw as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen Poland’s eastern flank.
Antoni Macierewicz. Photo: PAP/Darek DelmanowiczAntoni Macierewicz. Photo: PAP/Darek Delmanowicz

Macierewicz said: “One of the tank battalions currently belonging to the 11th Armoured Cavalry Division will be moved east.”

Macierewicz made the announcement while visiting Żagań, western Poland, where the 11th Armoured Cavalry Division is based.

Żagań will also be used to accommodate some of the 4,000 American troops due to arrive in Poland in 2017.

Macierewicz added: “As a result of American soldiers being stationed in Żagań we will be able to strengthen our eastern flank by transferring essential units to the east of the river Vistula.”

A Ministry of Defence spokesman later said that the battalion would be stationed at a garrison in Wesoła, a south-eastern district of Warsaw. The battalion will most likely be equipped with German-built Leopard 2 tanks.

Macierewicz has previously criticized the current deployment of Polish military units, the majority of which are based in the western half of the country.

Strengthening Poland’s eastern flank has been a policy priority since the 2014 annexation of Crimea by Russia. (sl/pk)

Source: PAP

tags: defence
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