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Polish president signs defence spending boost into law

PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk 23.10.2017 11:31
Polish President Andrzej Duda on Monday signed into law plans to steadily increase the country’s defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2030.
Photo: AlexVan/pixabay.com/CC0 Creative CommonsPhoto: AlexVan/pixabay.com/CC0 Creative Commons

Under the plan, the Polish army is to be expanded to 200,000 troops, including 150,000 professionals and 50,000 from a new Territorial Defence Force.

Amid fears of potential aggression by Russia, Poland’s ruling conservative Law and Justice party, which swept to power in 2015, has named defence as a priority.

The plans to increase military spending were passed by Polish lawmakers in mid-September.

Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz said on Sunday that, thanks to modernisation, increased funding and a boost in troop numbers, “the Polish army will within ten years gain the capability of stopping every opponent."

Under the new law, defence spending will rise to 2.1 percent of GDP in 2020 and will continue to grow until it reaches 2.5 percent of GDP in 2030.

Poland is one of only five NATO countries -- alongside the United States, Britain, Greece and Estonia -- that meet the Western military alliance’s target of allies earmarking at least 2 percent of their GDP for defence, according to officials.

Some of the funds will benefit Poland’s new Territorial Defence Force, which is expected to be 50,000 strong.

(pk)

Source: IAR

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