Poland urges Europe to switch to ‘war-mode’ defense production

Jo Harper

Poland’s Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz on Tuesday urged Europe to put weapons and ammunition production on a wartime footing to counter Russia’s military build-up, Polish state news agency PAP reported.

He also urged the EU to allow urgent defense purchases from NATO allies outside the bloc.

Speaking in Warsaw following talks with European Commissioner for Defense and Space Andrius Kubilius on strengthening European military capabilities, accelerating arms production and securing defense supply chains, Kosiniak-Kamysz said, “I personally favor switching to wartime mode in the production of weapons and ammunition throughout Europe.”

He argued that Russia was already operating in that way, without waiting for others, while Europe could no longer afford to remain complacent.

Kosiniak-Kamysz identified three priority areas for European defense investment: affordable long-range precision-strike capabilities, drones and counter-drone systems, and artificial intelligence.

He urged greater flexibility in European defense procurement, arguing that urgent purchases should be opened to NATO allies outside the EU when European manufacturers could not supply the necessary equipment quickly enough.

“We also propose that, in the case of critical purchases requiring rapid delivery, when it is not possible to obtain this equipment in the European Union, we should open up to our NATO allies who will be able to help us,” he said.

The proposal highlights tension in European defense policy between efforts to strengthen the EU’s domestic arms industry and the immediate need to acquire military capabilities in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine.

It could also have implications for defense manufacturers in non-EU NATO countries, including Türkiye, Britain and the US, although the Polish minister did not identify specific countries or suppliers in his remarks.